101 Questions
by Dark Videl
Summary: Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan. - Complete
1. Chapter One: The Mission

**Title:** 101 Questions

**Rating:** PG 13

**Genre:** Humor/Romance/Friendship

**Pairing:** Sasuke/Sakura

**Warnings:** Language, Violence, Nudity

**Summary:** Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan.

**Disclaimer:** I neither hold now ownership to _Naruto_ nor am I affiliated with the_ anime_, _manga_ or _mangaka_ of this series. The only thing I own is the plot and whatever made up characters of my own designs. Whatever lyrics used belong to their respectable owners as well.

**Author's Note:** I thought this idea would be rather cute. I think trying to keep Sasuke in character kind of led to the opposite in Sakura's case. However, she is just a little kid for the majority of the fanfiction. It's probably noticeable that Sasuke does not go to Orochimaru for power, so this makes things semi alternate universe. His clothing is the same, open shirt, except he wears black pants similar to Kakashi's. Major good-natured Sasuke torture, my first, and maybe only. Please refer to the additional author's note at the end of the story.

* * *

**Chapter One: The Mission **

* * *

Kakashi popped into the room an hour late, a book in hand, and a lie on his tongue. "I'm sorry there was this—"

"Save it, Kakashi. This isn't time for one of your long, bullshit stories." Tsunade said, cutting off the excuse, and Naruto's "liar" accusation. Clearly, this was serious for usually she'd enjoy the small entertainment.

_Well,_someone_ is in a bad mood. _The silver haired jounin silently retorted.

Clearly no one knew how much effort it took to create such wonderful tales especially when he was cut off before getting to the good part. Perhaps they believed he just pulled each and every one out of his ass. But it was simply an art, quite misunderstood, and ignored to boot.

Naruto glanced around, and noticed a particular member of their team was missing. "Hey, where's Sakura?"

Tsunade cleared her throat, and appeared slightly uncomfortable, yet pleased by his observation. "Well, I'm glad _someone_ noticed."

Sasuke gave her a look that clearly stated he noticed, but god forbids he be the one to open his mouth, and voice the obvious. The hokage continued, "This meeting is about Sakura."

Naruto's eyes widened as he rushed up to her desk, and exclaimed like a overly worried parent, "What happened? Is she okay? Does she need my help? I'll kick whoever's ass—"

"Calm down, you idiot! I can't hear myself think!"

Naruto slumped. So it wasn't as serious as he thought. But could she blame him for actually caring?

"As I was saying…" Tsunade cleared her throat again, more forcefully this time, and inclined her head to Shizune who just left through the back door. "I think a visual would give you a better idea."

Shizune reentered the room holding hands with a pink haired, green eyed girl no older than six. It didn't take a brain surgeon to put two, and two together.

"S-Sakura?" Naruto stared, or rather gawked along with Sasuke, and Kakashi. "You're so…tiny."

"What happened?" The Uchiha questioned, directing this to the hokage.

Tsunade sighed. "Well, as an apprentice, and a young lady I thought it was only right to teach her the anti aging justsu. It's far better than those anti wrinkling creams, and those face lifting surgeries. It's a rather complicated technique, and one incorrect hand signal can have uhm…undesirable results."

"Uhm Ms. Shizune…?" Sakura whispered and, still hiding behind Shizune, tugged at the woman's skirt bottom. "Who are these people and why are they staring at me like that?"

Shizune smiled warmly at the now miniature medic, and gestured to the three men before them. "Well, these are your friends. Naruto Uzumaki is over there in the black, and orange."

"Hey Sakura!" Naruto replied trying to make her not feel nervous, or weird about this, and opened his arms as if inviting her in for a hug.

The mini medic sweat-dropped in response and offered a weak, nervous smile, but didn't take him up on the offer. He was kind of loud, and weird.

"That is Kakashi-sensei. He's your teacher." Shizune pointed to the silver haired jounin who was concentrating rather hard on his novel again, much to the displeasure of everyone else in the room.

Sakura curiously tilted her head to the side. "What is he reading?"

"A…book."

"What kind of book?"

"It's just a boring book. In fact, it doesn't even have any pictures."

"I beg to differ." Kakashi interrupted, and tried not to be intimidated by the glare that he knew would be directed at him.

This sparked Sakura's interest much to Shizune's dismay. "I wanna read it."

The older woman laughed slightly while sweat-dropping. "That's enough questions for today, sweetheart."

"But that wasn't a question."

"Well, the thing is, you can't read it until you're grown up. It's a…very adult book."

"Oh." She seemed to accept that answer, thankfully, but continued to stare at the man.

"Now where were we? Ah yes, introduction. You've already met, Naruto," who was still waiting for a hug, "And Kakashi-sensei," she glared slightly at the perverted jounin, but he didn't care. "And last, but not least is Sasuke Uchiha."

Sasuke grunted in response, his expression remained impassive as usual.

_Would it kill him to at least smile?_ Tsunade wondered irritably.

But the idea of him forcing a smile probably would scare the poor girl, and half of Konoha instead of charming them. The thought alone made her shudder.

"S-Sasuke…" Sakura whispered, her eyes sparkling with adoration. Hearts forming in her eyes, the boy seemed to shine like a god, and again the medic fell head over heels in love with him.

Sasuke's eyes slowly widened. He and everyone else should have seen it coming. But for a little six year old she was quick on her feet.

"_Sasuke_!" Sakura exclaimed, and grabbed hold onto the boy's left pants leg. She was now official joined to him by the hip…or rather leg.

_Even as a _kid_ she rejects me._ Naruto sulked in the nearby corner, drawing little imaginary circles on the wall.

"Now isn't that cute." Tsunade snickered, ignoring how the black-haired prodigy's scowl seemed to say otherwise.

"Is this…permanent?" Sasuke questioned, trying unsuccessfully to get the little minx to remove herself from his pants, but she held on like super glue.

The hokage fanned his concern away with an amused smile on her face for the Uchiha acted as if the world was about to end. "Oh don't worry so much. She doesn't have enough chakara reserves to make this permanent. She'll be back to her old self in no time. The bad news is she has no memories of her other self, but it will come back as she ages. So basically she's the average six year old…sort of."

Shizune was just as relieved as everyone else in the room; it would be seen in Kakashi's eyes if he wasn't so focused upon the perverted pages of his novel. "But what do we do with her in the meantime? I don't think her parents will take this as easily as you are."

So Kakashi could concentrate on two things at the same time. What skill. "Hum…well you do have a point. They would be really upset. And it wouldn't look good for either of us."

Then the thoughtful expression on the hokage's face faded into a wicked little grin as she peered at the Uchiha and her apprentice. "Well, since she's so…'attached' to Sasuke, we'll let him take care of her until then."

"Me?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"_Him_?" Naruto shrieked, and looked at the hokage as if she were crazy.

She merely winked. "Just think of it as preparation to restoring your clan."

Kakashi, for the first time since being in the meeting, raised his head above his flirting paradise novel. "I have to agree with Naruto. Sasuke is just a boy. Though he is one of the two responsible ones out of the set—"

"Hey! Whose side are you on?" Naruto exclaimed.

"I wouldn't leave a child in his care for an unpredicted amount of time. In fact, I'll be happy to take Sakura off his hands."

Everyone looked at him as if he were insane. Was he serious? The man was quite lazy, or rather showed no real interest when it came to anything short of fighting, and reading. Even so a few seconds later Sasuke opened his mouth, and looked as if he was going to take him up on the offer. But the hokage beat him to the punch.

Tsunade scoffed, and spared Kakashi a bark of laughter since she was being professional at the moment, and he was sort of looking out for the medic's best interest. "Yeah right, as if I'd trust you. She'd find herself in your book collection, and be scarred for life."

Some people might have been offended, but he wasn't and actually thought it over while rubbing his chin. "And it would intervene with the steady reading pace I've set myself for. And no one is too young for new responsibilities. I think it's a great suggestion, and will provide a good life lesson."

_The only side he's on is his own. _Naruto scoffed. Kakashi must've had a lapse of misjudgment.

Sasuke ignored the older man, and turned to look back at the hokage, clear annoyance emanated from him. "I don't have time to be shackled with some kid. I have missions to complete, training to do—"

"Well, we can just postpone your mission." Tsunade said in a matter-of-factly tone. "You're one ninja down, and it was just a B rank anyways."

"B as in bor-ing." Naruto stretched the single word. As always, he wanted "action" which spelled "A missions".

"Gai's team can take care of it. They were itching for a mission anyways. As for training you can bring her along. She may not have many memories of her 'other self' before all this, but she does still possess her common sense. I know she won't interfere. You just might have a mini cheering squad."

Oh great, a mini cheering squad. Just what he has always wanted. Not.

Sasuke wrinkled his nose thinking about the insufferable girls that would try to sneak a peek at him training, and adding another lovesick one would be nightmarish. "Why can't you take her?"

"Because I'm the hokage, and I'll be busy governing." Tsunade smiled quite sweetly at the boy, but her tone was anything but. "I never knew you were a whiner, Uchiha."

"Che."

The hokage's smile widened in response to his threatening glare as she tilted her head to the side before adding, "Besides, it won't be so bad. Think of it as a bonding experience. Once you deal with a little girl you'll be ready for _anything_."

Naruto hated it whenever Sasuke seemed to get more attention, and that he was always overlooked when it came to certain missions. "Why can't I take care of Sakura? I'd do a better job!"

Tsunade merely raised an eyebrow, and everyone else looked at the teenager as if he told some weird, but humorous joke or just suddenly grew three heads. How rude. Their reaction was worse than the time Kakashi had volunteered.

"Have you looked at your apartment lately? She'd end up with a stomach ulcer by the time she gets back to herself. Besides, you're too irresponsible. With the free time you can get ahead of training—"

"And be able to kick Sasuke's ass in no time." Naruto proclaimed, and thrust his fist into the air. He could practically taste how sweet victory would be.

Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?"

Naruto froze, feeling several glares directed in his direction. He laughed nervously, and sheepishly replied, "Well, will you look at the time. I think I hear Kakashi-sensei calling me. Bye!"

Wisely Naruto left, but not without nearly running into the door in the process. Afterwards the meeting was abjured.

It seemed Sakura's shyness had worn off, and she began talking quickly and energetically like old times. Tsunade pulled Sasuke aside for a moment to discuss things further, Shizune went to inform Gai's team of their mission, thus leaving Sakura alone to successfully continue pestering Kakashi about his choice of reading materials.

"Just do whatever keeps her happy for now." The hokage ordered the annoyed and disinterested prodigy. "Gradually she'll begin to return back to her sixteen year old self. However, excessive stress and anger could prolong the justu further. This typically should last a week without the justsu being activated again, which is why I don't want her more emotional than she already is."

Sasuke listened, but didn't comment. He still couldn't believe he got saddled with such a task. It would've been easier if Sakura acted like him as a kid - quiet, obedient, and behaved. Not a sugar high, nosey, little imp.

"I'm bored." Sakura whined, walking away from Kakashi. She wasn't getting any attention, and wasn't being entertained at all since there was nothing fun in the room to keep her occupied.

The hokage's expression changed from somber to just plain sweet, and innocent with a happy little tone. "You'll be having a lot of fun soon. I promise. So why don't you grab your shoes from the doorway, and your bag?"

Sasuke raised his eyebrow. He never heard her use that sort of toning before. But it seemed baby talk was a genetic thing for the opposite sex.

"Okay." The little girl nodded, and happily went to fetch the two items.

And just as quickly the hokage's sweet smile turned into a menacing dark scowl as she whispered, "So what I'm trying to say is – don't screw up, Uchiha."

**II.**

About half an hour later Sakura and Sasuke were walking in the park heading for the training grounds to meet Kakashi, and Naruto. Normally it took less than five minutes to achieve this task, but with his team mate having short little legs, it took more than he expected.

**"You're annoying."**

Oh what he would give for that would-be annoying teenage girl to be walking beside him chatting away, or letting him be as they walked would be sheer heaven compared to her little self. Already in the child's presence he was getting quickly annoyed.

"Wait for me. You're walking too fast," Sakura said, and when Sasuke slowed down, she groaned, "Oh, you're walking too slowly. That snail is beating us!"

After finding a perfect pace, Sakura became rather silent for a while. She was kept busy by the activities of children playing games, couples cuddling, and occasional joggers. But at this age her attention span was far worse than Naruto when it came to long, complex explanations. But unlike him, she wasn't prone to zoning out, but to ask questions such as the famous "are we there yet".

Sakura sighed when Sasuke didn't reply, and peered at him curiously. "Hey daddy, where are we going?"

Upon hearing that name coming from her mouth the Uchiha would've fallen forward by the shock, but he recovered quickly enough to stop himself and retorted, "Sasuke."

"What? Where's that?" The mini medic blinked. They were going to a place named after him? How weird was that?

"My name is Sasuke. I'm not your daddy."

"But that's what Kaka-sensei and the hokage said."

"Well, they lied."

"Oh." Her eyes were wide with understanding, and then she shook her head. "Daddy, why'd they lie to me?"

"Sasuke. I'm not your daddy. Your father. Your papa. Your pa. I'm your team mate, okay?"

"So that means I don't have a daddy?" Sakura was horrified. "But everyone's supposed to have one, right Daddy Sasuke?"

"I just told you—"

"I wanna be like everyone else." She looked like she was going to cry, and make a scene – something he could do without. "I don't wanna be alone. Say you're my daddy, Sasuke Daddy."

He swore she was doing it on purpose, saying that, and looking up at him all innocently. Why was it that someone who felt nothing was left paralyzed by tears? It was pathetic.

"I'm not…would you just…just…" He peered irritably at her curious gaze, and with some effort controlled his temper rather well. "Look, never mind. Be quiet."

It was then that Naruto came running towards the two, waving his hands wildly, and began jogging in place as he talked. "Hey what's taking you so long? We're supposed to meet Kakashi-sensei at the training grounds half an hour ago. And you're later than he is!"

Sasuke said nothing more than pointing at Sakura before Naruto put the pieces together, and nodded. "Idiot." The frustrated Uchiha grumbled.

"Come on, Sakura. Let's get going before we turn into old people." Naruto grabbed the small child, placed her on his back, and away they went.

"At that speed he'll probably drop her." Sasuke scowled. And he knew who'd end up with the blame. Not the moron that did the dropping, but the moron that allowed the event in the first place.

* * *

**Upcoming Chapter: Rubber Ducky **

* * *

In the shower still, Sasuke turned his head upon hearing her voice, and stared. The soap slipped from his hand, and clanked onto the floor as black eyes met green. And then suddenly the silence was broken with screams.


	2. Chapter Two: Rubber Ducky

**Title:** 101 Questions

**Rating:** PG 13

**Genre:** Humor/Romance/Friendship

**Pairing:** Sasuke/Sakura

**Warnings:** Language, Violence, Nudity

**Summary:** Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan.

**Disclaimer:** I neither hold now ownership to _Naruto_ nor am I affiliated with the _anime_,_ manga_ or _mangaka_ of this series. The only thing I own is the plot and whatever made up characters of my own designs. Whatever lyrics used belong to their respectable owners as well.

**Author's Note:** This is really a new "style" for me. In my pervious works I have not turned a character into their younger version, well not this young. It's sort of weird, but fun. This chapter was very weird, in my opinion. All I can say is "poor Naruto," but that image wouldn't leave my mind. The more fluffy or romantic material will come a bit later on. Thank you everyone for the reviews, alerts, and favorites. I thought of putting Sai in here, but I really don't know much about his personality. Lee will be added as an extra separated from the initial story. I completely forgot about him. He'd make such a funny asset.

* * *

**Chapter Two: Rubber Ducky**

* * *

Sakura watched by the oak tree, a good few feet from the whispering bushes, and a safe distance from the training taking place. She was in awe by all the cool stuff her daddy would do, and said. But she wasn't the only one.

From out of nowhere the bushes that were once whispering sprouted heads of female ninjas, and regular villagers. And the nightmare began. Fan girls, fan girls everywhere, the worse nightmare that now centered on Sasuke's training lifestyle.

"I think he winked at me!"

"No, he winked at me!"

"Idiots. Sasuke doesn't do winks!"

"Sasuke is so amazing! Look at his chest! Yummy!"

"Do you think he'll take it off?"

"Did you see that? That Naruto kid is always getting in the way!"

"He just punched Sasuke's beautiful face! That's unforgivable."

"It should be a crime I tell you!"

"But Sasuke's still so hot."

"Really, really hot. I could probably fry an egg on him."

"Or whip cream." They moaned at this.

The crowd of girls continued their chitchat unaware they were being heard clearly by the four on the training grounds. Sasuke was beyond annoyed, Naruto wasn't sure to laugh his ass off or be pissed about the attention the Uchiha was getting, Kakashi ignored them for it was easy after practicing a lot of meditation over the years, and Sakura was just as annoyed as the Uchiha.

The ring leader, a busty red-haired girl tossed her hair to the side, and stood up with a determined expression. "I'm going to go over there right now and introduce myself."

Her two other friends, though envious of her confidence, were supportive and clapped encouragingly. As the girl marched towards the training trio, she came upon the mini medic.

"He wouldn't date you." Sakura informed the fan girl, quickly knocking down her ego a few notches.

The girl, Arisa, snorted, and eyed the child like if she were a squashed bug on the bottom of expensive shoes. "Why not? I'm one of the best chuunin from the Mist. Of course he'd date me. And how would a pipsqueak like you know who he'd date?"

Three feet away, the other fan girls glanced at her with a deadpan expression, but didn't comment. Clearly, not only was she cocky, and boastful, she was also exaggerating her status. Yet none of them dared to call her out on it.

"Well, because he's my daddy, lady. Don't you know anything? For a best whatever you are, you're not really smart."

"W-What did you say?"

The tallest of the three, Miki, swiftly leapt to her feet, and grabbed the fuming teenager by the arms who glared at her now. "Calm down, Arisa. She's just a little kid. God, you're so immature."

Kikyo, the oldest of the three by a year, nodded, and rubbed her chin thoughtfully for a moment. "You know she reminds me of someone. And it's really strange I don't remember. I mean the only person I know that has pink hair is that medic Sakura."

"And she says Sasuke is her daddy. Pink hair…parentage…_oh my god_!"

Arisa hit them both in the head, unable to remember why she befriended the two. "Knock it off you idiots. She's too old to be their kid. She's like six or seven."

"Six and a half." Sakura interrupted, looking at the girl as if she were dumber than a stump. This only fueled the short temper the teenager had.

"_I knew that_."

"No you didn't." And in a manner that mirrored her 'father', she added. "Now go away."

It wasn't said nearly as harsh as Sasuke, but to be spoken to as if Arisa were a kid was the last straw in her mind. Taking a menacing step forward, she growled. "Why you little—"

The kundai soared through the air, cutting off Arisa's threat, and landed inches above the three fan girls' heads. They screamed, and fell onto their knees. Their skin pale, and eyes as big as saucer pans they stared at their dream boy in disbelief as a few strands of hair fell to the ground.

"What was…?" Naruto stared at Sasuke, who slowly lowered his hand.

"I slipped." He replied impassively.

Kakashi and Naruto shared a look as did the other fan girls. Sasuke Uchiha never missed.

"I think that's enough training for today since your lack of concentration is hazardous." Kakashi slowly lifted his book upwards to notice a kundai was implanted in its center, and groaned.

Two birds with one stone. His student really could be quite cruel.

**II.**

Three minutes later Sasuke walked with Sakura from the training ground, thankfully without the fan girls following behind like a dog after its bone. Perhaps that little "accident" would scare them off for the time being. Things seemed to be looking up for him. In fact, Sakura had not asked a single question probably because her mouth was filled with candy as a bribe from Naruto.

Sasuke thought it would be easy getting from point A to point B since there were no girls coming up to him asking for autographs, dates, or just hanging all over him as if he were their property. But when they came upon two middle-aged women, that all changed. They greeted them with smiles, especially Sakura who looked adorable with a lollipop in her mouth.

"Oh how cute. Is she yours?" A pregnant blonde woman questioned, her brunette friend joined her carrying several shopping bags.

Sasuke said nothing, but merely raised an eyebrow. Did he look old enough to father her? Clearly someone had been tapping into the sake a bit too early in the morning. Maybe it was a pregnant woman thing. Obviously, he wouldn't know.

But before Sasuke could answer, or rather walk right past them; her friend gently pinched the oddly silent girl's cheeks fondly. "Of course she is. She has his complexion and cute looks. Or maybe they're siblings. Yes, that's it."

"Hum. I agree."

Sasuke was thankful Sakura didn't call him "daddy" otherwise the two women would become convinced, and then the questions would start.

Sakura stared at the blonde woman, her eyes always drifting back to the large stomach. "Why is your tummy so big, lady? Does it hurt?"

Before the woman could answer, Sasuke tugged Sakura away. He knew if she got the answer to her "tummy" question there'd be ten thousand more, and he was not in the mood.

However, it seemed as if the gods were having a field day for they passed several couples with newborns, and toddlers. Sakura watched them curiously, but strangely enough didn't say a word for several more minutes. But Sasuke knew it was coming, he could practically hear the wheels turning in her head. When she opened her mouth, green eyes now locked on him, he mentally braced himself.

"Where do babies come from?" Sakura questioned.

"Ask your parents." Sasuke muttered.

"But you're my daddy, and I wanna know now."

"Would you stop being so nosy, and just be quiet."

"Is it really the stork?" She went on, ignoring his demand. "I mean why would a big ole bird bring people babies? Wouldn't he get lost? How would he know who's baby is who?"

There was no use getting around it other than duck taping her mouth. But knowing Sakura, it would take little effort to annoy him further. So, he decided answering would fix everything.

"He gets help from…" The Uchiha cringed, unable to believe he was going to say it. But he was willing to do anything to stop her endless chitchat. "Santa Claus."

"_Really_?" She frowned; her eyes grew wider with curiosity. "Are you sure?"

After having his arm shook several times by the inquisitive girl, he finally retorted, "Yes. I'm sure."

"Are you sure you're sure? Because—"

"Yes, I'm sure I'm sure."

"But how can I be sure that you're sure and that—"

Sasuke's left eyebrow twitched as she continued her talking. This was getting ridiculous, and he was getting annoyed.

Sakura frowned, and mused over this for a while. "People are always telling kids things just to shut them up. So I'm not really sure. So how can you be sure that the Santa Claus helps the stork? I—"

"Because I said so."

She blinked at him several times, frowned, and then sighed. "Okay."

Sasuke closed his eyes, and allowed the tension to leave his body. Ah, blissful silence. He missed it so much especially now that she was done talking. When he had called her annoying at twelve, he never knew how wrong he had been. Sadly, for a genius, he was an idiot to think it was over because she wasn't the type to let things go if whenever she felt she was right.

"Sasuke Daddy, why's the sky blue?" She didn't accept his "because," and added, "Why can't it be pink, or red sometimes? It's always so blue, and that's boring. Pink is a nicer color. Don't you think?"

It didn't stop there. Her questions became weirder, more annoying and she became more determined to drive him crazy. And it worked.

"Hey, Sakura! Yo Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed, now finished spending lunch at his favorite ramen stand in the county. He was excited to see how Sasuke held up, but never expected this.

Naruto paused, and stared. Sasuke looked like a mess, worse than the time they had spent hours trying to unmask their sensei as genins. He had several bags under his eyes, his hair was a mess, he looked so pale, and in short, like a zombie.

"Are you…okay?" He asked slowly, and watched the Uchiha approach him with a confused Sakura in his hands.

When Sasuke reached Naruto he plopped the wide-eyed girl into his arms, offered no explanation and staggered like Tsunade after a wild night at the bar without saying a single word. Hell, he looked like the slightest of wind would knock him over.

"Man… that was _weird_." He whispered, watching the dark-haired ninja disappear around the next corner.

"Daddy?" The mini medic peered over the blonde's shoulder, but saw no sign of her would-be father anywhere.

"Hey Sakura," Naruto's big ole smile must have the opposite effect on her for she suddenly paled. Perhaps it was because no normal person should be this excited about caring for a toddler. Or maybe she knew the horrors that occurred whenever he babysat. No one really can be sure. "We're gonna have some fun. Just you, and me, and—"

Sakura screamed, "Gah! Dirty old man! Help! Help!"

"W-What? Where? Where?" Naruto then grimaced as she wiggled out of his arms. "I'm not…Sakura!"

Everyone turned to look at the screaming girl trying to push herself away from the now frantic Naruto who was trying to explain the circumstances. However, a few overprotective fathers, and concerned mothers of other children came over and successfully freed her by beating upon Naruto.

Sakura smiled to herself, and he knew it had been a rouse. She was truly a sly little girl that knew how to outsmart almost anyone.

"I hate babysitting." Naruto groaned. Every experience in the field had been nothing but trouble.

Watching from a distance with a clipboard in hand, Shizune sweat-dropped, but quickly walked over to Sakura who looked somewhat confused by everything. She couldn't believe how reckless Sasuke and Naruto were. It was clear neither boy was ready for parenthood anytime soon. Their paternal instincts were seriously lacking at the moment.

"Oh, you poor little girl, what are you doing out here by yourself? Children shouldn't be wondering around alone. Where's your…uh father little girl?"

"My father?"

_Tsunade's going to have a cow if she finds out the Uchiha left her unattended._ The older woman inwardly grimaced at the comical image of an unpleased hokage. Comically if one was not at the receiving end of the other woman's legendary fists.

"He went that way. He didn't look too good." Sakura pointed to the direction Sasuke had left.

"Well then, we'll just go find your father, and check up on him then."

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers." She replied, which caused the older woman to sweat-drop in response.

"I won't hurt you. I'm good friends with the hokage. We met earlier, remember?" It took some convincing but eventually Shizune won over the cute child, and took her by the hand to locate her "father".

**III.**

It took Shizune and Sakura no more than ten minutes to find, and enter the apartment. Each room was neat, and well polished as expected from Sasuke. Nothing was too extravagant or pricey yet managed to appear elegant. The kitchen and living room showed no signs of the Uchiha.

"Sasuke Daddy where are you?" Sakura exclaimed, but she received no response. But since the door was open the Uchiha had to be home.

Shizune listened carefully, and heard running water coming from down the hallway. "He must be taking a bath." She then set a few shopping bags by the couch, and plop the child there as well. "I'll just leave these here. There's some extra clothing, bath things, and toys in here for you."

"Okay. Bye bye Shizune."

"Good bye, Sakura. Be a good girl, and don't overwork the boy too much." Then she bowed politely, and closed the door behind her.

Sakura sat on the couch like a good girl for about a few minutes, and then began kicking her legs impatiently. She smiled to herself. "Sasuke Daddy is taking a bath?" She processed this new information for a moment, and then smiled. "I'll take one too. I'm really dirty after all that walking, and ice-cream."

Sakura grabbed several rubber ducks from the shopping bags, a towel, and then hustled into the bathroom. She opened the door, and shouted, "I'm ready for bath time, Daddy!"

In the shower still, Sasuke turned his head upon hearing her voice, and stared. The soap slipped from his hand, and clanked onto the floor as black eyes met green. And then suddenly the silence was broken with screams.

Hearing the screams that were loud enough to shake a house, watching Naruto run past her with the ramen chef on his tail demanding past bills to be paid, and Jiraiya fleeing in the opposite direction from a pack of angry women with a camera in hand, Shizune sighed, and shook her head with an amused smile.

"There is never a dull day in Konoha." She whispered.

A few minutes later Sasuke stumbled out of the bathroom, making sure to keep a firm grip on his towel. After that traumatic incident Sakura had ran off somewhere else in the apartment, and hopefully not in his closet or underneath his bed.

Unlike her sixteen year old self, mini Sakura didn't know the meaning of knocking or privacy.

Sasuke could not believe she had seen that, or that he had actually screamed because of it. This was the first time, since he learned to bathe himself as a child, that anyone – especially the opposite sex, had seen him fully naked. It was embarrassing, and he probably scarred her for life. He could only hope there had been enough fog to conceal the majority of his body.

Walking past the living room, Sasuke caught Sakura talking to the stray cat he somewhat adopted since it wouldn't leave him alone. He would've just left her there talking to the feline before he caught part of the conversation.

"But his thingy was _so_ small, Mr. Cat."

_Small_?

Sasuke froze. He could care less about his look other than hygiene wise, but it was a matter of male pride, and ego – which he had more than his share from genetics, that being called "small" was not something any man wanted to be described as.

His cheeks burning with anger, and embarrassment, Sasuke merely scoffed underneath his breath. What did she know anyways? She was a kid.

A pintsize annoying kid, that shouldn't be so knowledgeable about certain areas on the male anatomy, and then blabbing it to some strange cat. Clearly that moment when the hokage pulled him aside to give books on child care was probably the very moment she sneaked a peek at one of Kakashi's dirty books or was somehow got informed because of her irritating form of twenty- twenty questions. That or she was remembering something from her grown up self. But why of all things would she remember _that_?

All he knew was he wasn't small. Period.

"I mean he's nothing like the horse in Kaka-sensei's picture book. And what was that lady doing with him anyhow?"

Horse.

Lady.

The pieces were falling into place quickly, and hopefully with her six year old mind she wouldn't be able to put two, and two together like the Uchiha just did. Otherwise things would get awkward. And he was certainly not going to inform her about the 'wonderful' tales of the birds, and the bees.

Sakura blinked curiously at the silent feline who peered back at her with a blank, but adorable expression. "I don't know either, Mr. Cat. We'll just ask Sasuke Daddy later."

He knew it. _He knew it._ He was going to kill Kakashi. Or better yet, burn his dirty "picture books".

Sasuke left her alone with the cat, and tried to ignore the fact that she was talking about his body, and trying to figure out the mysteries behind Kakashi's collection of dirty pictures. When he came back, the person he least expected was there talking to the inquisitive child.

* * *

**Upcoming Chapter:**** Sleep With Me **

* * *

Lost in his thoughts he never saw the spoon coming until it was forced into his mouth by the mischief pink haired child. Once it was in, Sasuke was forced back into reality in one of the cruelest manners. There was no time for preparation. Sasuke made a face, the color of his complexion turned bright green, but he swallowed.

Watching Sakura skipping happily to the sink, and getting on her tippy-toes to put the plate on the counter, Sasuke could only glare at her back trying not to break his chopsticks in half.

This girl, this annoying little girl, was going to be the end of him.


	3. Chapter Three: Sleep With Me

**Title:** 101 Questions

**Rating:** PG 13

**Genre:** Humor/Romance/Friendship

**Pairing:** Sasuke/Sakura

**Warnings:** Language, Violence, Nudity

**Summary:** Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan.

**Disclaimer:** I neither hold now ownership to _Naruto_ nor am I affiliated with the _anime_,_manga_ or _mangaka_ of this series. The only thing I own is the plot and whatever made up characters of my own designs. Whatever lyrics used belong to their respectable owners as well.

**Author's Note:** Thanks again everyone for the reviews. This chapter is a little bit longer, and hopefully won't disappoint. Really, after the next chapter one would think I'm purposely out to torture Sasuke. But I love the boy even if he can be such a jerk. The next chapter is one of my favorites...especially the first few scenes.

* * *

**Chapter Three: Sleep With Me**

* * *

"What do you mean you're all out? You're Ichiraku's! You can't run out of ramen!" Naruto sounded quite hysterical, and why not? He ran out of ramen the day before, woke up an hour early to run a good ten minutes, only to be disappointed.

"Sorry kid, but I can." Ichiraku shrugged, and eyed his valiant customer sympathetically.

"Don't worry, Naruto." Ayame smiled reassuringly as she wrote down a note for herself. "We'll be restocked by next week."

Naruto slumped in the bar stool. "But I won't be able to survive."

"And my wife says I'm a drama queen." Ichiraku muttered, and ignored his daughter's frown. "I'm sure you'll be just fine, Naruto. Maybe stop by my friend down the street, and have some sushi or something. Ramen alone really isn't part of a balance breakfast meal."

He groaned. "Now you're sounding like Sakura."

"Speaking of which, I haven't seen her, and that quiet boy around."

Ayame glanced up at this observation, and her eyes sparkled with intrigue. "Maybe they're…"

"No. I doubt it."

"But it would be just like a dream, wouldn't it?"

"Still doubt it. That boy—"

"Doubt what?" Naruto interrupted.

"My daughter is a hopeless romantic. She believes your friends are…how should I put this? Ah, they're 'together'."

He blinked, and then stared at them strangely. "Well, sure they're together. We're all together."

"I don't think you understand."

Naruto grinned. "Get some ramen and I'll understand."

He laughed. "Oh you're good, but no can do. Don't worry. I'll call you as soon as we get our order of noodles in. I got you on speed dial kid."

"Promise?" When Naruto got a brief nod, he gave in, and sighed. "Okay. Later old man."

Ayame waved him off, her cheeks flushed. "Oh, and Naruto, please bring back that nice teacher of yours next time, okay?"

"I am not old!" Her father exclaimed, but the ninja was already long gone. He turned to his daughter with pleading eyes, "Am I?"

She sighed. "Let's go home, father."

"Do you think he was serious about the together thing?"

"Honestly? I can't tell." Either the kid was being tightlipped out of spite – which wasn't really his type, had no idea, or misunderstood. They weren't exactly sure since there was no ramen to bribe him with.

**II.**

"What. Are. You. Doing?" What didn't people get that when doors and windows were closed it isn't an open invitation to come inside.

Jiraiya merely grinned in his current kneeling position, and offered the suspicious ninja a friendly little smile. "Oh hello there my boy, you're looking very…domesticated."

Sasuke scowled in response. He noticed how Sakura was posing like a model, the camera in Jiraiya's hand, and how close the pervert was. Would this man stoop so low?

"Sakura, go to the kitchen."

Sakura frowned, and peered at him inquisitively. "What? Why? He was going to take pretty pictures of me and turn me into a model like in Kaka-sensei's picture book."

Sasuke merely scowled in response, and his eyes flashed red. Meanwhile Jiraiya frowned, oblivious to the Uchiha's reaction, and wagged his index finger at the child. "That wasn't exactly what I said."

"Oh, I'm sure." The Uchiha replied sarcastically.

"I said you were looking pretty today, and I had extra film, and…look, maybe I should get going. I was only doing Tsunade a favor by checking up."

"So that means no pictures?" Sakura sniffed.

He patted her on the head. It was quite odd seeing the girl he referred to as Tsunade's twin acting as such. Sometimes he wished he were a father, but then remembering the joys of being single and unattached quickly made the feelings of incompleteness disappear.

"Sorry kiddo. I like my life a lot more. Besides, I'm scheduled for book signings all this week."

"Aww."

Sasuke watched Jiraiya skillfully jump out the window, and heading towards the public bath house. He turned his glare onto Sakura. "Didn't anyone tell you not to talk to strangers?"

"Yes." The green-eyed imp nodded, quite seriously. "But Naruto said there aren't strangers in Konoha, just really, _really_ strange people."

He sighed. This was hopeless. "Do me a favor. Don't listen to idiots."

Sakura nodded once more, and decided not to bring up the fact that the word "idiot" wasn't a nice thing to call a friend. However, she did recall saying that often about the same boy and some loudmouth blonde girl but it seemed more like a distant memory.

Sasuke sighed and looked at the little minx but said nothing. If he thought this task was going to be easy, he was going to be in for a big surprise. Perhaps Sakura was behaving this way because there was an unbalanced combination of her younger and older self. Whatever the reason, the gods were making things ten times more complicated, and weird than they should be.

Sakura looked at the miso soup before her and wrinkled her nose. Full thanks to a few rolls of sushi and rice, she peered curiously at him from across the table. "Hey Daddy?"

"What?" He answered, grumbling the word with clear annoyance. Even after several hours of trying to get her to call him "Sasuke," with no success, he knew it was futile. Really, it was driving him up the wall with the constant "daddy" "Sasuke Daddy" and so forth. And being a good ninja he knew when he lost a fight.

Sakura looked so serious for a child despite the inquisitive tone she used. "I was talking to Mr. Cat earlier and we thought—"

"Time for bed." He abruptly stood up, surprising the little medic who looked out the window with a frown.

"Bed? But the sun is still out." Her protest didn't last long when she was confronted with the words "bubble bath" and her toy ducks.

For someone that excelled well in the ninja world, Sasuke didn't realize trying to prevent something such as discussing his body would lead to another uncomfortable situation. And that was bathing Sakura. He had every right to be uncomfortable since he never seen a naked female body before other than the time he accidentally walked in on Sakura. He still remembered the pain from having all sorts of items thrown at him. When he got to the door, it was closed. One knock and he heard the soft footsteps of the medic inside.

Sakura slowly opened the door part way to peek at him. She wore a shower cap, a cute pink towel around her tiny form and had a duck in her hands. She then wagged her finger at him as if he were the child instead. "You stay outside, Daddy. Shizune said boys aren't allowed to see girls when they're nakey."

Sasuke didn't protest in fact, he merely grunted in response. "Just don't drown."

She smiled, and promised before disappearing into the bathroom. He stayed beside the partly opened door with his ears alert, his arms crossed, and his cheeks still warm, and pink. Thankfully, he didn't have to bathe her. Otherwise things would be beyond awkward when she got back to normal.

Finally, nightfall had come upon Konoha and ended one hectic but eventful day. Sakura was given Sasuke's bed, and he took a futon from his closet, and slept in the living room. He should not have expected things to end so easily especially with the thunder storm raging outside after midnight.

Sasuke's ears perked at the sound of light footsteps coming into the living room, but he didn't turn to look for he didn't need his sight to anticipate the movement on the floor. A few seconds later he opened his eyes and skillfully slipped a kundai from underneath his pillow, ready for any possible attack.

The body loomed over his for a few seconds more, and then whispered, "Can I…can I sleep with you?"

Sasuke muttered a curse, and relaxed. He should've known. "No."

"Please?"

"No."

There was silence, and he closed his eyes, believing that would be the end of it, only to hear a sniffle. He scowled. There was no way he would fall for the oldest trick in the book. That decided he closed his eyes tightly as the one occasional sniffle turned to two, then three, then four.

"**Just do whatever keeps her happy for now…excessive stress and anger could prolong the justu further…I don't want her more emotional than she already is. So what I'm trying to say is – don't screw up, Uchiha."**

There was six, and seven, Sasuke clenched his pillow tightly, and did something he hadn't done in a long time. He gave up.

"All right." He grumbled, and silently cursed the hokage. "Just stop sniffling. It's annoying."

The sniffling stopped instantly. A bright smile formed upon her lips, she practically jumped into the bed. "Thank you, Sasuke."

"Whatever. Just go to sleep."

As she snuggled against his body, he frowned in the darkness. Soon enough she started to drift asleep, her breathing became steady, and she had stopped squirming around for a comfortable position. Then as he finally closed his own eyes, she gripped his shirt, and whispered, "I like you, Sasuke."

This girl was so, for a moment Sasuke couldn't find a word to describe it. Instead he stared at her in the darkness, made a face that displayed exasperation, and eventually fell asleep. Thankfully it ended there…for the night.

**III.**

It was six in the morning when Sasuke heard the clanking noises of pots, and pans coming from the kitchen. Not even the birds were out looking for their worms at this hour. Half awake, his hand felt around for Sakura, but discovered the little minx was nowhere to be seen.

Sakura was dressed in a cute red dress, a matching bandana around her head, and flour all over the front of her small form. Today she had turned nine.

"What are you doing?" How could she have so much energy at such an ungodly hour?

"I made you breakfast, Sasuke." Sakura led him by the hand to the table, and then proudly pointed to the delicious meal she spent a good fifteen minutes preparing.

Sasuke wrinkled his nose at the would-be breakfast. The eggs, he hoped they were, were runny, the bacon took a whole new meaning to well-done, and the toast was now half its original size, burnt completely. His stomach churned at the sight. And here he thought Naruto's cooking was bad. This clearly didn't reflect her cooking skills as a teenager.

"Don't you like it, Sasuke?" She peered at him with hopeful, big green eyes. If she had a tail it would've been wagging like crazy behind her.

"Uh…yeah." Sasuke, to his credit, forced a small smile on his face, but he looked more constipated than pleased. However, the happier she felt the quicker the justsu would wear off according to Tsunade, and the quicker he'd get his normal life back. So he just hoped his stomach could hold out.

"I'll get you some juice, Sasuke." Sakura exclaimed, and like a hyperactive newlywed bride she skipped to the fridge leaving Sasuke to poke cautiously at the westernized meal. He took a bite, and forced himself to swallow. He could feel it slipping down to his stomach like slime.

With a muttered curse, the Uchiha shoved the plate away, and chugged down the glass of orange juice. At least she got it from the carton, and didn't make it from scratch.

Sakura watched Sasuke as he calmly set the glass down. He didn't move from the table right away though. She peered at his plate which was hardly touched.

"Eat some more, Sasuke." Sakura encouraged, her eyes bright with excitement.

At that moment Sasuke swore she knew about the hokage's demands, and was using it as some sort of payback. Hell, she probably had her memories back too.

Lost in his thoughts he never saw the spoon coming until it was forced into his mouth by the mischievous pink haired child. Once it was in, Sasuke was forced back into reality in one of the cruelest of manners. There was no time for preparation. Sasuke made a face, the color of his complexion turned bright green, but he swallowed.

He watched Sakura skip happily to the sink, and got up on her tip-toes to put the plate on the counter, Sasuke could only glare at her back trying not to break his chopsticks in half.

This girl, this annoying little girl, was going to be the end of him.

**IV.**

"Why don't you go help Sasuke, and stop loitering around my apartment?" Kakashi asked. He was a bit annoyed that Naruto was lazily lying on his floor eating rice cakes all morning.

"You're just mad because you can't find volumes one through five." Naruto replied tiredly, yawned, and didn't bat an eyelash when the older man started running about the room like crazy.

"I knew I had them right here…or here. But they're gone." Kakashi appeared rather frantic as he searched through his collection of books, beneath his bed, inside his closet, and even the bathroom.

Naruto stuffed another rice ball into his mouth, and continued talking as if the older man hadn't spoken. "Besides Sasuke will probably dump Sakura on me, and I'll be beaten up again by old ladies and their wooden sticks…_again_."

"Pockets." Kakashi snapped his finger, and then proceeded to search through all his pants and vest pockets, but found no signs of the books.

"You _lost_ them?" An imaginary Jiraiya growled, large fangs, and two horns appeared on his head. Behind him three beautiful demon women hissed.

Kakashi sat on the floor, and stared at the wall, completely stumped on where to look. "They were just here yesterday. Jiraiya's is going to unsubscribe me now."

"I still have a bruise." Naruto stuffed two more rice balls into his mouth, and licked his fingers.

More determined than ever, the jounin began looking in the most ridiculous of places such as the waste baskets. "Flirting paradise books, hello?"

"**This is getting good." Kakashi murmured, but looked at his clock. If the devoted jounin read more then he'd be later than usual and he didn't need a longer lecture from his students and to have the word "liar" shouted at him twice as loud.**

"**I'll finish you later then." He promised, placing his favorite bookmark, which was a portrait of his favorite actress in a skimpy swimsuit, between page ninety-eight, and ninety-nine.**

"Man, this stuff is good." Naruto practically moaned. Yes, probably because it wasn't his hard-earned cash that'd brought it.

With a deadpan expression, Kakashi then turned to look at his student with an exasperated sigh. "Naruto, if you're going to eat my food, then it would be common courtesy to help me look for the books."

Naruto shook his head, and wagged the next rice ball in his hand calmly. "No can do, sensei. I've got ninja stuff that I need to get done."

"Oh right, ninja stuff."

His understanding expression contradicted with his mocking tone, and then Kakashi solemnly added, "Well, it must be something special since we're not scheduled for any missions with the hokage, training is postponed, Jiraiya is out of town, and ramen is out of stock this week. Stop me if I'm way off."

"Ha, ha. Very funny." Naruto replied sarcastically, and then he blinked. "Oh hey, I forgot to give you something. Sasuke wanted me to drop it off here. Said it was something important…"

After much struggling with removing junk items such as receipts, trinkets from other villages, and other unnecessary things, Naruto finally fished what he needed from his back pocket, and tossed them to his sensei.

"Those are…" Kakashi gleefully collected the novels off the floor, but when he scanned through the pages of the first there were crayon drawings all over the words, and pictures. And if that wasn't bad enough the other novels fell apart the moment he touched them, and turned to charcoal ashes on the floor.

"V-volumes one through five…" Kakashi looked as if someone had just run over his best friend, and to him these books were nearly as valuable. They had been limited editions with crystal clear close ups, personal interviews, and other goodies. Now they were…they were…

"Uh…" Naruto glanced at the remains, and patted his disheartened teacher on the back several times while laughing quite loudly. "Well, there's always the library, eh Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi turned to him slowly like a monster in a scary movie, his left eyebrow twitching, and his voice low, and quite frightening. "Naruto. Get out."

Grabbing another pack of rice balls, and some pocky, he did just that while muttering quite loudly, "Moo-dy!"

**V.**

"Lady Tsunade, shouldn't you be trying to figure out how to reverse the effects?" Shizune watched her mentor slam down the bottle of sake, and sigh blissfully.

Cheeks flushed, and eyes slightly droopy, Tsunade replied, "Why would I do that? This is a life lesson for the boy. Maybe he'll grow an emotion or two."

"Lady Tsunade."

"And I don't think he'll suddenly go hormonal crazy when she hits puberty either." She laughed at the mere thought, but it came out sounding more like a snort. "That boy has the self-control of a monk."

That of course was quite true.

"Well, with all do respect, I think it's understandable."

"I guess. He's not exactly asexual or anything. After all, he is a man. I get where he's coming from. I'm not necessarily into the opposite sex other than eye candy since…well, you know."

The hokage's voice became suddenly soft, losing the slight slur to her words, and for a moment she felt her heart clench at the memories. Many of them were quite bittersweet of her and that wonderful boy, but one bloodstained recollection blew the happiness and showed how painful vulnerability was.

"I know." Shizune whispered, and gently placed her hand on the older woman's left shoulder.

Tsunade sighed, and pushed the bottle of sake away as if bored or disgusted by its mere existence. "I'll look into it later. I'm on downtime, remember?"

"Yes." The Elders had taken quite a lot out of her mentor with their nagging and using their "concern" as a way to further criticize her position. That was the reason why at twelve in the morning she was drinking sake instead of hunting those old coots down to butcher them.

"And besides, what's the worse that could happen?"

**VI.**

Sasuke looked at himself in the mirror, and twitched visibly. He couldn't believe she had suggested such a thing. And he couldn't believe that he was being subjected to such torture. Oh, the things he did to keep on the hokage's good side. Sakura was going to owe him big. For, there he was putting curlers into her hair, and applying fake lipstick, and eye shadow onto the medic's face until she looked like a clown – this was obviously not his calling. But that wasn't the worse of it. Oh no, because right now she was trying to do the same with him.

"You're so beautiful." Sakura cooed.

Sasuke scoffed, as she patted his head affectionately like if he were a dog. He had been called a "pretty boy" before, and hell, even "beautiful". It was part of his genes, thanks to his mother he was considered Konoha's heartthrob the minute he came in contact with the opposite sex.

Sakura stood on the nearby chair with the bright red lipstick in hand, and grinned. "Kiss kiss, Daddy."

Sasuke could deal with dressing her up. And yeah, he could even deal with the hideous pink shirt, and even pretend to like what she called "breakfast", but this was where he drew the line. He was not going to become a drag queen no matter how much it would please her.

"That's enough." Sasuke moved his face from the lipstick's aim, and grasped Sakura by the wrist, not tightly but applied an adequate amount to catch her attention.

She frowned, and tried to get her wrist free but to no avail. "But I wanna play some more."

"No. I'm done." He was really starting to rethink restoring his clan until he was at least thirty. And if he had girls, he wasn't sure what he'd do.

"But_ I'm_ not done. We're not all the way ready for the party." Really, her "father" wouldn't know fun if it bit him in the butt.

"Well, that's too bad." Sasuke stood up, removing the young child from his lap, and onto the floor. He was really starting to miss her older self, and made a silent note to never call her 'annoying' again.

Sakura thrust her index finger at him, and retorted, "You're mean. I'm gonna tell your mommy!"

He rolled his eyes, and glanced at her in a bored manner. "Oh, I'm so scared."

"Well, you should be. I'll tell her and she'll be really, really angry!"

"It's going to be kind of hard since she's dead."

Sakura was flabbergasted, and for a moment she couldn't say a word. Shock melted into confusion, and then shame. The medic lowered her head and whispered, "Oh…I'm sorry."

He peered at her, a slight scowl on his face. "Whatever. I don't care. It was a long time ago anyways."

"I'm sorry." Her mood swings were confusing to him. Attempting to figure her out was like trying to find a needle in the haystack or better yet trying to figure out Naruto's love – or rather obsession for ramen. But he chalked it up to her being an emotional individual. It seemed she always was, and would be.

"I told you it doesn't matter." Sasuke muttered, and then he approached his dresser to find a more appealing shirt. Fuchsia was not amongst his top favorite colors.

Sakura slowly wrapped her arms around his legs, held him tight, and sniffed. He stared down at her small form with slightly wide eyes as the young girl stood there, and then after a moment she whispered, "Hey, daddy…"

"What now?"

"I'll be your new mommy then because everyone needs a mommy."

He stilled.

"**Everyone needs someone, Sasuke."**

His hand resting upon the soft truffles of pink hair, he stared up blankly up at the ceiling, and listened to the soft sounds of the rain from the open window. This time, for the first time in a long time, he didn't feel the hollowness of coming home to an empty house, and an emptier life.

Despite her current form, Sakura was able to wiggle herself even further into his heart, successfully breaking down yet another wall around it.

* * *

**Upcoming Chapter: Outing**

* * *

"Now kiss the bride." Sakura said in a sing-along voice. He reluctantly leaned down to offer her a peck on the cheek. She grinned, and kissed him fully on the lips just like in the book.

Sasuke had little time to react before she tossed the bouquet towards the pile of stuffed animals that attended, grabbed his hand, and tugged him towards the bed. "Now that we're married we gotta start making babies!"

"W-What?" He paused, making her stop in her tracks.


	4. Chapter Four: Outing

**Title:** 101 Questions

**Rating:** PG 13

**Genre:** Humor/Romance/Friendship

**Pairing:** Sasuke/Sakura

**Warnings:** Language, Violence, Nudity

**Summary:** Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan.

**Disclaimer:** I neither hold now ownership to _Naruto_ nor am I affiliated with the _anime_,_manga_or_mangaka_ of this series. The only thing I own is the plot and whatever made up characters of my own designs. Whatever lyrics used belong to their respectable owners as well.

**Author's Note:** This chapter isn't beta read, and is a tad longer. You guys are great with the wonderful feedback. I had real fun with this chapter. It's actually one of my favorites. If anyone would please inform me of Sai and Karin's personalities I would be estatic.

* * *

**Chapter Four: Outing**

* * *

Sakura discovered something today. Her father was a very boring man. After all, who'd read twelve foot long scrolls for fun? Hell, what person in their right minds would read without pictures?

Her attention span was limited, and with no one else her age to play with, she had to get Mr. Not-So-Fun to play a game with her. Thinking back to her one, and only interaction with Kakashi, and his book of wonders, she received an idea.

"Let's get married." Sakura said suddenly, and watched Sasuke in the loveseat lower the scroll slightly to peer at her with a raised eyebrow, and a frown.

"Aren't you a little young for that?"

"No, I'm not." She pouted, and folded her arms across her chest as he went back reading.

"Then I'm too old for games."

"You're not old. Kaka-sensei is old. He has silver hair. Besides, it's raining, and I'm bored."

"Then go play." Sasuke said as if it were the apparent answer to all their problems. Perhaps it was, but he should have known better that once she had an idea in her head, one might as well go with the flow. It was just a lot easier that way.

"But you're supposed to play with me. That's what Naruto said."

"Never take advice from an idiot especially one that can barely take care of himself."

"And if you don't play with me I'll…I'll…" Sakura scowled at the smirk she was sure was now forming on his lips. "I'll _annoy_ you."

He merely raised an eyebrow once again with a small amused smirk that said 'oh really'. Sakura scowl deepened for even she knew that wasn't the world's best comebacks.

"Believe me, I don't get annoyed easily." It wasn't exactly a lie. He wasn't nearly as short tempered as Naruto, but he wasn't the mellowest individual either.

With a grunt Sakura sat across from Sasuke, and stared at him for several minutes. Other than his fingers occasionally twitching, he didn't appear annoyed. So she did something she knew annoyed him, she would use her mouth to talk, sing, hum, laugh. Yes, whatever it took to drive him insane. She knew she was being selfish, but he didn't have anything fun, and toys got boring quite fast when you were the only child around.

Left eyebrow twitching like crazy, Sasuke eventually lowered the scroll, and placed it onto the table. He would never get anything done at this rate. Even if he left the room, she'd find a new way to annoy him. Plus, from what he learned, happiness sped up her growth. The more pleased she was, no matter how embarrassing, or irritating it may be it had to be done. So in the end it was a rather continuous and annoying cycle in his opinion.

Sasuke was not one that liked wasting energy especially on the inevitable. But what he was going, he was doing quite often when it came to her. He gave in _again_. "Five minutes."

"Ten."

"Eight."

"Six."

"Seven."

"Fine."

Then she made him pinky swear.

This was ridiculous. No. This was hell. It was one thing for a girl to drag a boy her age into this mess, but he wasn't a little kid. In all his life he never once played dress up. Sure he dreamed of becoming part of the Uchiha police department like his father, but he didn't go as far as dressing for the part. Maybe it was a girl thing. Yes, girls did have a knack for doing a lot of crazy things especially Sakura from time to time.

Sasuke waited impatiently at the dresser with a fake rose taped onto the left side of his shirt as Sakura took her sweet time moving along with the soft melody of classical music from his radio. She had flowers from outside, still somewhat damp, and wore the table cloth as her veil, and a white party dress. Several stuffed animals were on the opposite side of the aisle acting as guests. When she finally arrived beside him, the rabbit began to speak. Or so Sakura said, because when Sasuke question this, she hushed him.

Out of the corner of her eye, as the would-be minister spoke, Sakura looked at her "beau", and blushed when he glanced briefly at her.

Thirty more seconds passed then, "I do." Another passed, and another, but Sasuke said nothing. She glanced at him. "Well?"

He scowled. "I do. Okay?"

"Now kiss the bride." Sakura said in a sing-along voice. He reluctantly leaned down to offer her a peck on the cheek. She grinned, and kissed him fully on the lips just like in the fairy tales.

Sasuke had little time to react before she tossed the bouquet towards the pile of dolls that represented her bridesmaids, grabbed his hand, and tugged him towards the bed. "Now that we're married we gotta start making babies!"

"W-What?" He paused, making her stop in her tracks.

Sakura peered up at the teenager, looking at him as if he possessed four new heads or was just plain stupid. "That's what was in Kaka's book. It said when the man, and woman get married they do this dance thing to call the stork to bring the baby. It began with an 's' or something."

"Forget it." Sasuke scoffed, and turned his head to the side to hide the faint blush.

Screw the law. He was really going to kill Kakashi for this. That man, intentionally or not, was spreading his perverseness to innocent people. More importantly did Sakura know what she was saying? Hell, had he when he listed his ambitions at twelve? Clearly not.

Sure, Sasuke knew the mechanics regarding sex such as what went where, and what happened inside the womb. As Fuguka's son he could not be ignorant, and he enjoyed reading all sorts of materials from a young age to appease his father with the vast knowledge he obtained. But when he had been a genin, he truthfully never gave it much thought back then.

And at this age Sakura obviously had no inkling to what that "dance" was. And he sure as hell wasn't going to educate her either. With his luck, and her curious mind, she'd likely try it at any given time. The stork story stayed.

She pouted. "But why?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

Oh why hadn't he seen that one coming? "Because I said so."

"You can't just-that doesn't make sense. I wanna have a baby. Stop being stingy!"

"_Stingy_?" Did she want him to get arrested or something? That dance was taboo between them. Hell, he hardly even thought about the act itself in comparison to most of his gender.

"What?" Sakura jiggled her stuff rabbit with a somber expression, nodded, and glanced back at her slightly inquisitive looking 'husband' with a pout. "Okay. I forgive you only because you're cute. But we're doing that dance later, okay?"

He scoffed. Like hell.

She took that as an agreement, and smiled at him. "We'll call the stork later. It's lunch time."

"Fine. I'm cooking." Discarding the table cloth back onto the living room table, he entered the kitchen steering clear of the bright pink apron she left on the counter.

Sakura ran after him with her rabbit, and exclaimed happily, "But I wanna cook for you."

The thought of runny eggs, burnt bacon made Sasuke's stomach churn. That would probably be his first and only desire to try westernized food. Thank the gods for ripe tomatoes, and rice balls.

**II.**

"Hum…" Naruto stared at the orange fox, and then at the red fox on the third shelf of the local toy store. He just couldn't decide which he wanted to purchase. They were both cute, furry, and the same price. But which would better suit Sakura?

"Sir, is there something that I can help you with?" Kai, a middle-aged red-haired woman dressed in a blue business suit and matching shoes, tried to wait patiently by his side.

"Hum…" He tapped his chin thoughtfully as if he were ordering ramen instead.

"Uh, sir?" She glanced at the ninja who was still looking quite focused upon his decision, and didn't seem to hear her.

He reached forward to the orange fox, and then moved his hand away like if he had been burned. "Ah…no, no. Hum…"

"Is that a "no" then?" Kai was slowly, but surely starting to get a bit annoyed, but her manager was nearby, and she wasn't about to lose her standings in the company because of a mere customer. Especially a customer that was likely to purchase something from their store.

**III.**

Rice balls. Tomatoes. Sushi rolls. Salmon. Lettuce. Pickles. Apples.

Sasuke plopped these items into the cart as they made their way down the next aisle. Surprisingly no fan girls, or nosey busybodies were around. It must be the apocalypse.

Sakura rolled her eyes while watching the many silver pots, and pans go by. As predicted, Sasuke wasn't picking up anything sweet. He hadn't been kidding about his dislike for sugary substances. How utterly boring was that especially for a child with a major sweet tooth?

"Pocky." She added, and plopped the item into the small handheld grocery basket.

Sasuke looked at her for a second, but said nothing. All children had a sweet tooth; even he had enjoyed the joys of sugary sweets. That is until sweets became a mark of a dreary past. He also knew this would be a small price to pay for being another step closer to having the real Sakura back.

Once everything was paid for, the two exited the small grocery store without incident. This was when they came upon Neji who appeared to have been waiting for them, leaning casually against the building looking intimidating, yet unperturbed.

"Hyuuga."

"Uchiha."

"Sakura." She smiled, and drew the attention of the older prodigy who merely raised an eyebrow.

"I see." Neji murmured, with a small smile. "So what I heard from Gai-sensei is true. A pint-sized medic. How interesting."

"How annoying" would've been Sasuke's choice of wording, but he didn't voice this.

"It's nice to see you again, Sakura." He was as polite, and charming in his own way, similarly to Sasuke, but different since the two had their own style on how they carried themselves.

"It would be nice too if I knew who you were, Mr. Hyuuga." She replied with a smile.

"Yes. Yes, it would I suppose." Neji offered her another small smile then turned his attention back to Sasuke. "May I have a word with you?"

The Uchiha gave a quick, but curt nod in response.

_He has such pretty hair…I wish my hair was that long. He looks nice, but not as pretty as daddy. I wonder what they're talking about._ Sakura watched the two men converse in hush tones, and kept herself occupied by her thoughts. It was then she heard the whispered taunting of the boys beside her.

"Wow, your forehead is huge! Can you land a plane on it?" Kyo, an eight year old, redheaded boy, laughed. He then began to move his hand through the air, mimicking an aircraft.

"It probably needs its own room with how big it is." Karou snickered, and gave his two brothers both a high-five.

"Don't be mean guys. She probably doesn't have any friends. No surprise there." Kaiba, his twin, made a gag sound. "I could never be friends with a girl whose forehead is as big as yours."

_I won't cry. I won't cry._ Sakura wanted to run, she wanted so damn well to cry, but remained rooted to the ground. Why did those words have to hurt? Why did she have to care so much?

"No one could like someone like her. Look at her hair! Like a skinny cotton candy."

"God, you're so lame." Kaiba punched Karou in the head, and he punched him right back.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah!"

Unknown to the four bullies, Sasuke's left eye turned to look in their direction as they continued their childish taunting.

Yuki chuckled, leaned against the brick building behind him, and nibbled upon a new piece of pocky. "Oh man, she's crying. This is hilarious."

"Crybaby. Crybaby. What cha gonna do crybaby?" His three younger brothers sang, laughing at the tears flowing down her cheeks as she tried desperately not to cry.

"Did you say something?" The chilly voice made Sakura's tear-filled eyes slightly widen.

"Yeah. Got a pro-" The words died in their throats as if they saw the angel of death itself.

Kyo stiffened, and upon looking up the boy appeared ready to soil himself as he pointed at the tall teenager before them. "I-it's him."

"U-Uchiha." Karou swallowed nervously, and nodded his head.

"I heard h-he can k-kill a hundred guys j-just by l-looking at him."

One would have to wonder if the puddle beneath Kaiba's feet was caused by perspiration or something else. "I heard he's so dangerous even the hokage's a bit afraid of him."

"All I know is he's scary." He was the guy parents told kids about to make sure they came home before the streetlights came on.

Yuki scoffed. His dark eyes glanced at the silent prodigy. Maybe he too was frightened, but his pride, power, and ego were all he valued. "That's all a load of bull. I bet pretty boy here is all talk."

"Are you crazy?" The three younger boys whispered, frightened for their lives unlike their brother. They looked up to see the further narrowing of the Uchiha's eyes, and the movement of his hand coming from his pocket. But no one expected what happened next.

Seeing the sniffling girl glaring up at him, he scowled. "What do you want?"

"Don't talk about Sasuke like that!" Sakura exclaimed, and punched the boy right in the nose. He went flying several blocks, over villagers' heads until a building, and a bush stopped him. An impressively large crater lay beneath his unmoving form while many people just gawked.

"My store!"

"Did you see that?"

"Fucking awesome!"

"Is he all right?"

"Damn. I hope that man was insured."

"Now that's what I call a punch!"

"But she's only a child!"

"I told you we should've brought the camera. But no, you wanted to bring the cat."

The conversations of bystanders were pretty much the same. A few people eventually got over the shock, and went to assist the boy or just went on their merry little way. Yuki's younger brothers had long fled after successfully soiling themselves as they screamed in a great panic down the street. It seemed they will not be patronizing anyone again.

Looking at the damage and the commotion the medic caused, Sasuke muttered a curse. Tsunade was not going to like this.

"**Oh hell yeah! Did you see that? Sakura's got a punch better than both your boys combined." Tsunade pointed to the three different sized craters and then smiled smugly. "But after all, she did learn from the best."**

**Clearly someone either didn't know "modesty" or refused to acknowledge it.**

**Regardless, Jiraiya wisely kept his mouth shut. Not only was she the hokage, but she was Tsunade. Nuff said.**

He sighed. Or maybe she would.

**IV.**

"Hum…" Naruto reached for the orange fox, but withdrew his hand. He never knew toy shopping could be so hard. But then again, he never really shopped.

Ever since team seven had been formed most of the shopping had been done by Sakura. Hell, she was the reason why he had to trash his old ninja uniform - though he does have it stored safely in the mess place he called a "closet".

To Sasuke and him, she was a mother and a sister all in one. As a mother she would kiss, or rather heal the booboos, help clean their apartments - really applied to Kakashi, and Naruto since Sasuke was quite the "neat freak", cooked - rice cakes, tomatoes, or ramen weren't exactly part of a balance meal, and worried over them.

As a sister she was just there for them, and did everything a typical sister did which included bickering. Three years ago no one in their right mind would have ever thought she'd bicker with, let alone punch, Sasuke, but she had done so on more than one occasion outside of training.

So standing there undecided was probably the reason why she would always accompany them whenever it was time to give someone a present, because some men just couldn't shop alone - or shouldn't be allowed to.

"Hum…"

"Sir, I'll come back." Kai tersely replied after two hours had gone by, and tried not to storm away even though she was quite exasperated especially since being ignored wasn't normal for her.

He blinked, and a light bulb above his head went off. "Ah ha!"

**V.**

Sasuke stared in silence as Sakura lowered her fist, her eyes still narrowed at the unconscious boy. It seemed that even though she didn't have her memories, she sure as hell had her inhumane strength.

"Let's go." He murmured, and then proceeded to walk with the bag of groceries.

Sakura blinked a few times, and ran to catch up with Sasuke. The villagers moved out of their way whispering with wide eyes, and soft gasps. She silently peered at the Uchiha from the corner of her eye with a frown. Was he mad at her? Had she done a really bad thing by punching that boy?

"Are you mad at me, Sasuke?"

At least they had made progress. She had stopped calling him "daddy" and "Sasuke Daddy" and all other annoying pet name combinations - or at least he hoped so.

"About what?"

Now that Sakura was no longer a curious six year old there wouldn't be peanut butter into the VCR - or at least he hoped not, drawings over mission scrolls, mud pies in the oven, girly tea parities he was forced to endure, or makeovers with hair curling rollers, bright colored eye shadows, and flavored lip sticks galore - the true horror.

"That I punched that guy."

"No. You could've punched harder. But it's fine."

"Really?" Sakura smiled at him like a child in a candy store, pleased that he wasn't angry. However, the smile quickly turned mischievous as she pointed to the ice cream parlor up ahead. "Since I did such a good job we can get ice-cream, right?"

He scoffed. "Don't push your luck. Besides, I hate sweets."

"Everyone loves sweets, Sasuke. It's the law."

"Well I'm a rebel, deal with it."

"A rebel, huh."

Suddenly greeted by silence he looked at her. As always she was as easy to read. She looked upset, discouraged, and frustrated probably due to what the bumbling brothers had said.

Sighing, he actually broke the silence which was quite rare. "You shouldn't let other people's opinions upset you so easily."

"I-I don't." Sakura replied, her cheeks pink from embarrassment, and showed she was lying.

He smirked, now amused. "Your nose twitches whenever you lie."

_It does?_ She gasped, and covered the betraying part of her. How had he known when she didn't? She stared up at him with confused green eyes, but said nothing. Was what Shizune said true? Did some people have eyes behind their heads?

"Don't bother covering it up, I already saw it." Sasuke smirked, and peered at the mini medic as she continued to clutch at her small nose. "Your forehead, it's not even all that noticeable. It's pointless worrying about something that you can't change, and will grow out of."

"I guess." Sakura murmured, sounding not entirely convinced. She peered up at him again now with her glossy green eyes, and asked, "Did anyone make fun of you when you were a kid, Sasuke?"

"No." Sure there had been rumors he might be "batting" for the other team, but no one dared make fun of him in his face other than his teammates, but that was typically good-nature fun.

No. No one made fun of him. They just constantly compared him to a murderer, to a missing nin that destroyed everything once precious to him without a single trace of remorse. They looked up to him like if he were a god, unable to make mistakes, yet with masked distain, and fear of what he could become. Sometimes he wondered if it would've been better to have been teased.

Frowning, Sasuke looked at her as she peered up at him curiously. She was so hopeless, and vulnerable unlike her other self. Seeing her this way made him feel guilty for being so crude to her in their genin years even if she had been annoying as hell.

Sakura stared down at her feet while her inner self was giving her a much needed pep talk. She had to become stronger. She shouldn't let every insult get to her like that. And Sasuke said it wasn't as big as everyone made it out to be. And he was smart, and never lied to her yet. So maybe someday she would grow out of it or something. But until then she had to accept the fact that her forehead was a bit oversize, not humongous. If only it were that simple.

"Here." The cone was practically shoved up her nose at the close distance.

"For me?" Sakura smiled happily, and took the offered cone, then while licking the vanilla swirl; she noticed he had one of his own. "But I thought you didn't like sweets, Sasuke."

"I don't." Yet he still ate it anyways. She didn't know why, he probably didn't know either, but they sat there beneath the oak tree eating in a blissful silence.

Things were starting to look up, one day at a time.

* * *

**Upcoming Chapter: The Hormonal "Friend"**

* * *

Naruto glanced to where the Uchiha's eyes had gone for a split second, freed himself from Kakashi's grip, and yelled, "Oh my god! You pervert!"

"A deal _is_a_deal_." Sakura aggressively grabbed Sasuke by the collar using her inhumane strength, her lips almost touching his, before old faithful came rushing out from her mouth, and all over his clothing.

"Ha ha! Now that's what I call a kiss!" Naruto fell off his stool, and landed on the floor while Sakura's head dropped onto the table.


	5. Chapter Five: The Hormonal “Friend”

**Title:** 101 Questions

**Rating:** PG 13

**Genre:** Humor/Romance/Friendship

**Pairing:** Sasuke/Sakura

**Warnings:** Language, Violence, Nudity

**Summary:** Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan.

**Disclaimer:** I neither hold now ownership to _Naruto_ nor am I affiliated with the _anime_,_manga_ or _mangaka_ of this series. The only thing I own is the plot and whatever made up characters of my own designs. Whatever lyrics used belong to their respectable owners as well.

**Author's Note:** What Naruto did in the last chapter my aunt is notorious for. She once spent two hours looking at the same watch, but in the end didn't purchase it. I was also inspired by an episode in _Sailor Moon_. Yes I still enjoy occasionally revisit, and watch this awesome_ shoujo_.

Now there will be a concept some people may be a bit uncomfortable about. Basically without ruining everything, it has to do with the reproductive system. No, it's not intimacy. Thank you guys for the reviews, and I plan to answer remaining questions on the next update. Bewared, yet another chapter that hasn't been beta-read, but hopefully it will be later this week.

* * *

**Chapter Five: The Hormonal "Friend" **

* * *

"101." Sasuke read the thermometer after taking it out of the reddish face child's mouth, and set it on the nightstand by the alarm clock.

He sighed as she peered up at him with droopy eyes, looking like a sad puppy instead of a sick child. The hokage had been right. He was going to experience everything about having a kid.

A few seconds later there was a loud pounding at the front door. Judging from the pattern, and annoyance level, Sasuke knew exactly who was trying to barge in. Taking his time, one hand inside his pockets, he opened the door.

"Yo!" Naruto grinned.

"Go away." He slammed the door in the smiling blonde's face.

"Hey!" Outside, Naruto slide up the partly opened window, and peered in with a scowl. Some people had no manners when it came to his guests. "What's your deal?"

"Don't you have ramen to eat?"

"Nice trick. I already had ramen. Now let me in. I got all these cool stuff." Naruto gestured to the large sack of toys draped over his shoulders. Over the couple of days, he and Sakura had begun bonding after that whole "park" incident. In fact, the blonde was more than happy to play the big brother role.

Sure Sasuke wouldn't mind dumping Sakura on the idiot, except she'd probably end up half dead or lost, or both. Naruto just wasn't responsible, and he wasn't about to look like a quitter anytime soon.

He frowned. "They'd better not be anything stupid like that stuffed fox, and orange jumpsuit."

"Hey, she liked those!" Naruto pouted. Trust Sasuke to make it look like Lee when he offered Sakura that hideous green jumpsuit. He may not know much about fashion, but he damn well knew fuzzy brows knew even less.

Sasuke scoffed. "Go away."

He pouted when the window was slammed shut and locked, but decided not to push his luck further. That guy always was the selfish sort. Keeping her all to himself. How rude.

Sasuke walked away from the window, but like everyone within a mile radius, he heard, "I'll be back, bastard! Believe it!"

"Che…Like I need another child around." Sasuke grumbled. Knowing Naruto, if he caught Sakura's cold Sasuke would somehow find himself dealing with another snot nose teammate who'd be more annoying than usual with the complaints of being too hot, too cold, and so forth.

Quietly Sasuke entered the bedroom to find the small child still in bed, and not looking any better as she struggled in a sitting position.

Sakura coughed. "I don't feel good, Sasuke."

He quickly thrust the small trash bin into her lap. The last thing he wanted was a reenactment of that summer night she had too much sake, and barfed all over him trying to get a kiss.

"**Come on, stop holding out, Sasuke. Just one little tiny kiss." Sakura tried to sound seductive, but with a drunken slur, and her whining tone, it didn't exactly work.**

"**Yeah Sasuke, what are you waiting for? Don't tell me—" Naruto's taunting was cut short by Kakashi for he knew the tipsy blonde was going to remind everyone of that horrid "first kiss" in the academy.**

"**I won fair and square. The deal was I'd get a kiss." She sounded like a drunk, spoiled child now, pouting sweetly with another refilled glass of sake in her hand.**

**Clearly, she not only took after Tsunade's strength, and sassy attitude, she was becoming a sake lover. That blonde woman was nearly a bad influence as Jiraiya. **

**With a deadpan expression, Sasuke turned his attention back to his drink. "That was made between you, and the idiot. I wasn't involved."**

"**You're so mean. Come on. Whadda got to lose?"****Sakura implored. Her partly unzipped vest displayed a great deal of cleavage as she pressed her self against Sasuke's chest.**

**Naruto glanced to where the Uchiha's eyes had gone for a split second, freed himself from Kakashi's grip, and yelled, "Oh my god! You pervert!"**

"**A deal **_**is **_**a**_** deal**_**." Sakura aggressively grabbed Sasuke by the collar using her inhumane strength, her lips almost touching his, before old faithful came rushing out from her mouth, and all over his clothing.**

"**Ha ha! Now that's what I call a kiss!" Naruto fell off his stool, and landed on the floor while Sakura's head dropped onto the table.**

**Sasuke scowled and glanced irritably at his unconscious teammates. This was the last time they would ever be allowed to go where sake was being served.**

**Kakashi merely shook his head, and turned the next page of his novel with an amused smile. "There's never a boring day with these three."**

**Kakashi merely ignored the death glare Sasuke sent his way.**

After a quick coughing fit in the trash can, she peered up at him with a impish little smile. "Do you know what will make me _really_ happy, Sasuke?"

His left eyebrow twitched quite rapidly as he glowered at the sparkled eye child before him while the hokage's words loomed above his head like a sharp hatchet of death. He knew he was going to regret this.

He grimaced inwardly and forced the word, "What?"

A few minutes later after selecting what she wanted, Sasuke had four small stuffed animals on the bed beside Sakura. One was a white rabbit; another was a turquoise turtle, an orange cat, and a brown dog or Ms. Fluffy, Mr. Grumpy, Mr. Cat, and Mr. Brownie.

As a child Sasuke never indulged the pleasures of stuffed animals. His mother would play with him as a toddler with the adorable creatures, but he found them lacking in entertainment and too girly after reaching five.

Now at sixteen, nearly seventeen, Sasuke was back into the world of make-believe, and dollies. He couldn't believe he was doing this, but it was better than listening to her complaining, or having the retransformation delayed any longer. It was either his sanity or his pride, and it had been a close.

"How was your day…Ms. Fluffy?" God, would someone just kill him now?

Sakura frowned, and shook her head. "Sasuke, if she's Ms. Happy, she's gotta sound happy, not like she's about to eat someone."

Che. Everyone was a critic.

"I'm trying. Deal with it." He replied through gritted teeth. This made the girl roll her eyes, and snuggle back into the warmth of the blankets.

"Okay. Okay."

After a few more minutes of Ms. Fluffy, and friends, Sakura closed her eyes, and turned around from the group. "I'm bored now."

And he was ready to shoot himself. Tossing the annoying creatures aside, Sasuke sat on the edge of the bed looking for a storybook. He knew that this was what she would request soon. It seemed since she was a kid Sakura always included in reading about romances since currently he was reading a story about a castaway princess and her charming prince.

As a teenager he caught her reading a book she claimed Ino recommended with a half naked female and a muscular male clinging onto one another on the grass, and the word "slightly sinful" written on the front cover in the back corner of the library.

**Sasuke raised an eyebrow and watched Sakura turn the page in the novel, her cheeks bright red as she took her time reading every word. He expected this from Kakashi, not from Sakura who always had her nose buried in adolescent magazines as a preteen and then thick boring medical books later in her teen years.**

"**What are you reading?"**

"**Sasuke!" Sakura shrieked, making him wince. The book went flying, knocking a poor bystander in the head.**

So it seemed even the once considered innocent member of their team indulged in perverted materials once in a while.

Even as a child Sakura was quite observant, especially with her natural inquisitive mind. "You don't have many pictures here, Sasuke. My room would have tons and tons like the photo album in Naruto's room."

"Aa." He had seen her room once. Surprisingly it wasn't necessarily girly, but she had albums of photographs, and new clippings. He suspected she probably had a few dedicated to him, but were hidden away in her closet or something.

The photograph on his dresser caught her attention. She grasped it into her small hands, and smiled. "I know this one. Naruto and Kakashi-sensei both have the same picture. He doesn't have his orange book here. Oh, you and Naruto look so funny. What were you mad about?"

"It's not important."

"Mhm. That's me, isn't it? When I get older?" Sakura grinned and touched her future self with one finger, making small circles around the face. "I become really pretty too…don't you think?"

Sasuke said nothing. He could care less. He wasn't like other guys who could readily give out compliments especially regarding the opposite sex. In fact, it was quite rare for him to voice his compliments, and whenever they did it was not something one should take lightly.

He was just content with the fact that Sakura was aging relatively quickly and that was of more important than whether she was pretty or not. So hopefully the nightmare would be over soon.

Once Sasuke was done reading a new storybook, one that actually was quite interesting at least compared to the romantic and sluggish tales, he went into the kitchen and was gone for some time leaving the bored child to keep entertained.

Hearing his light footsteps, and the clanking of silverware, Sakura looked up to see a bowel of hot rice porridge laid on the nightstand, and Sasuke blowing on a spoonful before thrusting it into her mouth.

"Here."

"Mhm. It's yummy." Sakura complimented with a smile. He was a better cook than she was. It was probably because he was so self-reliant at a young age. Well that and he was a perfectionist. If they got married it seemed some of the traditional roles would be switched.

"Yeah…thanks." Sasuke didn't blush, despite looking slightly embarrassed. Nevertheless he was grateful for the compliment.

He then promptly shoved another spoon into her mouth. "Now stop talking, and eat it."

After shuffling to the bathroom, brushing her teeth, and being lifted into bed, Sakura quickly fell asleep the second her head hit the pillows. Sasuke watched her silently for a moment, and then gently covered her small form. She snuggled up to the pillow, murmured his name, and finally fell into deep sleep.

At that moment Sasuke allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief, especially now that her fever had broken. He stared at the girl, her pink hair sprawled against his pillow, a content smile on her face.

She was annoying as hell, talked too much to be human, unbelievably nosey, loud, and always clung to him like a second skin. But there were times when she was quiet, looked at him with a silent adoration, and held her own in battle. So she was…kinda of cute, he guessed.

**II.**

It was around eight in the morning when Sasuke frowned in his sleep. There was something pressing up against him, something quite soft, that he knew hadn't been there last night. He felt a bit…odd as well.

Opening his eyes, Sasuke grimaced as the sunlight hit his face from the window, but quickly adjusted. He peered downward, and discovered Sakura had aged to her thirteen year old self overnight. Her breasts against his chest, her head nestled beneath his chin, his arms around her holding the girl close. Anyone would believe that perhaps they were secret lovers.

"Sasuke." She moaned, clearly dreaming of the boy as she snuggled closer to him.

It took a few seconds for him to process everything. Sasuke's cheeks warmed while his eyes slightly widened. Slowly he removed his hand from around her small form, silently glaring at the offending limb for betraying him.

Sakura turned in her sleep, murmuring something else underneath her breath, unaware of his realization. She wiggled in the bed, trying to seek his warmth but Sasuke abruptly stood up, and without a glance backwards, quickly left the room. All the while wondering what he was feeling, and why he was acting the way he was. But all he knew was he'd never be able to look at her the same again.

**III.**

"Should she be drinking?" Jiraiya wondered, lounging on the new couch given to the hokage's office.

Shizune nodded even though at times she herself would silently ask the same. "It's a normal thing. She's just a…social drinker now."

"Right." He drew the word out with a slight roll of the eyes.

"_And_ it helps her keep focus."

Tsunade swirled the sake in one hand as she circled a small number beneath a page long set of equations. "Well, according to the calendar, I predict three more days at the most."

"I wonder if Sakura will have her little friend visit. She should be at least thirteen by now."

The two women shared a look of dread. After the incident in the village, this was something they didn't want happening to the unexpected pair. Sasuke, as a boy and one that spent limited time in the company of females, and Sakura, with no memories of how to handle the situation, would meet some huge hills in the path to getting the medic back to normal.

"What friend?" Jiraiya poked his head above his notepad, taking a rest from writing down the next chapter of his globally acclaimed erotica.

Tsunade scowled. "You're so clueless for a man that spends his time 'researching' women."

"Oh._ That_ friend…of course I knew that." Oh how glad he was to not have taken Sakura has his apprentice. Having one Tsunade was enough for one lifetime. Two was sheer insanity.

Recalling how oblivious Naruto had been the first time it happened, the hokage shuddered. He had become the first living human pretzel that day. "Well, let's just hope Sasuke is spared an emotional Sakura."

Jiraiya nodded vigorously, now focused upon his writing again. If she did who knew how much that might stunt his already late blooming hormones. And if that happened, he would never get grade "A" research like he did in his youth since a certain blonde ninja wasn't the greatest at spying or reporting without getting caught or unknowingly leading the hive back to him.

"Yes. After all, the worse that can happen is that she kills him…okay, that is really bad. But at least he'll get another lesson about women…evil, evil creatures that use their bodies to torture poor, helpless men."

When Jiraiya looked up at them, he grimaced, probably realizing he hadn't verbalized his thoughts. Tsunade merely narrowed her eyes. "I'll just excuse that as a moment of insanity."

"Well then, I should go as backup." Shizune said, and made a mental note to pick up a few bars of chocolate, a heating pad, some tranquillizers, and a large first aid kit.

**IV.**

Sasuke was a genius, once the number one rookie in Konoha, and a prodigy child. He was a jounin at sixteen, and likely to be an ANBU by his eighteenth year. Even before hitting his preteens he read, and understood thick textbooks on arithmetic, philosophy, and physics better than some of the teachers. He could figure out complex problems, and come up with an effective solution in minutes, if not seconds. But for the life of him, he was caught off guard by Sakura's bizarre behavior. After racking his brain, recalling the unusual morning wake up call, the Uchiha diagnosis the problem. It didn't take long after she came crying and panicking because she was bleeding around midday.

Sasuke, as a rule, didn't care what people thought. Or so, he wanted everyone to believe. He could get embarrassed, and at times jealous depending on the situation, and who was involved. Going into a drug store, and buying necessary materials was not something he looked forward to. He knew in the back of his mind, in the process of restoring his clan there was a fifty percent chance he'd have at least one daughter. Now would it be so bad as to assume his wife would take care of such a delicate matter? But he had no wife. Instead, he had a thirteen year old girl moaning from the pain on the bed.

Perhaps the gods were finally being kind to him for the moment he stepped out of his apartment; he noticed Ino traveling on the street below. Probably on her way to see Shikamoru or her "he's not my boyfriend" as Sakura would say. Wherever she was going, at her age she must know what to get, and where. But he was never good at asking for help without expressing annoyance and embarrassment for it showed signs of weakness, and vulnerability.

Sasuke jumped from the fourth floor and landed before the chirping blonde girl, who gasped. He looked at her, inwardly formulating a way to ask the favor without pissing her off or making himself look like a fool.

"Sasuke, you scared me. What are you doing here?" Ino asked then clapped her hands together, and laughed to herself. "Oh duh, I forgot you live nearby."

He found that surprising considering the fact that she used to stalk him when they were younger. She knew everything a fan girl typically wanted to know except his underwear size, and certain parts of his body.

"So," She smiled at the Uchiha. "What can I do for you, Sasuke?"

For most of his life Sasuke was someone who preferred listening, or doing than actually speaking. Something his other two teammates found conflicting at times. He never was one for beating around the bush, and he was known to be blunt.

"Sakura's…" But just because he was a blunt individual did not mean there were subjects that made him natural uncomfortable. Just how would a guy go about discussion such circumstances – especially with someone of the opposite sex?

"Yes?" Ino raised an eyebrow, and waited for him to continue, which was strangely taking a long time.

Sasuke sure was acting weird. Was it just her or was he asking for a favor? Incidentally, it looked like he would rather drive a kundai through his heart. But she began putting the puzzle pieces together from his vague descriptions, and clear uncomfortable movements. He looked like her father the first time he discovered his little girl was not so little anymore.

"Oh I see! You want pads for Sakura!" Ino nodded, and from the look on his face – more annoyed, than unease, she must've said this somewhat loudly.

He rolled his eyes. "No. I want them for myself. Of course, I want them for her."

Sarcasm indeed remained his friend. She laughed and patted him on the shoulder. "Oh, you're so serious, Sasuke. You haven't changed one bit. Don't worry. I'll buy some, and drop them off. You're so lucky I happened by. I mean who knows what could've happened. You'd probably buy the wrong brand or size. Or gods know wha…ah, I don't mean you're ignorant or something…well, on this matter yes, but lots of men are."

She offered him a look that asked, "Feel better?" but clearly he didn't.

Seeing that Sasuke was not in the mood - when was he ever, Ino laughed to herself. "Know what? I'll just go buy them, and stop wasting time. Have her use a washcloth for now." She went through her purse, and discovered a medicine bottle, which she tossed to him. "Take two every four hours, for her pain…and yours."

Sasuke made a sound that she accepted as a sign of gratitude. After all these years it still took a little figuring out what each almost unique grunt meant. It was like a decoding game to some. Since Ino had given up her childish affections for Sasuke, and treated him as nothing more than a friend, she was met with less hostility, and sometimes a single word response.

"I believe it calls for a 'thank you'." Ino gave him another pat on the shoulder, and then headed the opposite direction. A second later she looked back at him with a grin. "Hey, think of it this way. At this rate she'll be back to normal in no time."

He raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Did she want him to go skipping down the streets shouting for joy? Yeah, didn't think so.

She just continued to smile, though silently cursing his response, and wondering what she ever saw in him past looks. "But I'd be careful of what you do next if I were you. Later!"

"Che." He replied, and with his hands still in his pockets, the Uchiha skillfully jumped back onto the fourth floor with great ease.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Good luck, Sasuke." Ino exclaimed good naturally, but secretly muttered to herself, "you're gonna need it."

This, of course, was true. Sasuke knew he would need more than just luck. Recalling brief private conversations some girls had when they were genin, who thought they were actually whispering, but clearly didn't know how, he heard some unusual horror stories especially involving verbal, and at times physical brutality to source of annoyances. Typically, depending upon the female, these sources were often male.

**V.**

"Here." Sasuke held out the cup of water, and the correct dosage, which she took without question.

"T-Thank you." Sakura laid her head back onto the pillow, silently willing the pills to activate themselves. Her stomach hurt, she felt 'icky' or sick to her stomach, felt bloated, and exhausted. She hated this time of the month and this was her first one that she remembered.

Sasuke didn't like seeing her in pain, which was why he was so overprotective of her whether anyone knew this was highly unlikely since he made it a practice to appear detached from everyone. He could do nothing to save his family, and he felt the same sense of weakness now. He could do nothing to offer her consonance without breaking out of his own comfort zone. Plus, he didn't know what to say for just about anything could make her irritable in this stage. Just thinking of the numerous of times Naruto went to the hospital made him wince.

Sasuke stood up, clenched his fists for a moment, released, and then murmured, "I'll make some tea."

Girls were complicated, and annoying. Menstrual cycles were sheer and utter hell for both men, and women it would seem. If he said something, somehow it managed to have a double meaning. He never dealt with an overemotional Sakura, or a pmsing woman in general since his mother remained the same mellow behavior, so he was completely unarmed going into dangerous territories.

He was not a smooth talker – never cared to be, nor a rug to be walked upon. And despite being a genius, he was no mind reader. This of course, just made things more difficult. His silence never drove her insane before, well to his prior knowledge, so why did it now? He was uncertain. Ino had said every woman was different when it came to this time of month, but at times Sakura could be lethal – she had shown him a picture of Naruto in a coma when he'd been fourteen. Whatever hormones were acting up, or whatever gods that officially hated him, one thing led to another, and he was staring at an upset medic.

Sasuke remembered something about Ino warning him about avoid being insensitive. But it seemed almost everything he said, and did apparently was insensitive, intentionally or not, at the moment.

And today Sasuke learned what they said about assuming was quite true. He had assumed when she left the kitchen that she'd be in the bedroom, the living room, or perhaps the bathroom. He was wrong. The medic was MIA.

He felt the hatchet fall, and the hokage's menacing laugher in the back of his head.

Oh just perfect.

* * *

**Upcoming Chapter: Gratitude Serenity**

* * *

Sasuke opened his eyes part way with a scowl, peering up at her confused and slightly frightened face. The painful hold loosened almost completely for he recognized the pink hair, and set of green eyes that clearly did not belong to the threat he was having in his nightmare.

"Sakura…" Now was it just her or did he seem suddenly closer. Feeling his warm breath brushing gently against her lips, his eyes intense even in his feverish state, made her heart flutter.

Was he going to…?

Sakura's eyes grew wide, nearly dominating her face, as she stared openly at the Uchiha. "S-Sasuke…"


	6. Chapter Six: Gratitude Serenity

**Title: **101 Questions

**Rating:** PG 13

**Genre:** Humor/Romance/Friendship

**Pairing:** Sasuke/Sakura

**Warnings:** Language, Violence, Nudity

**Summary:** Sakura tugged at Sasuke's pants, and peered at him curiously. "Hey mister, what's an ass?" At the end of the day he'll be lucky if he wanted to restore his clan.

**Disclaimer:** I neither hold now ownership to _Naruto_ nor am I affiliated with the _anime_, _manga_ or _mangaka_ of this series. The only thing I own is the plot and whatever made up characters of my own designs. Whatever lyrics used belong to their respectable owners as well.

**Author's Note:** I honestly doubt _Naruto_ would ever mention the reproductive system in the context of the last chapter especially since the manga is more focused upon all, but that. This is the final chapter to "101 questions". I'm both happy and sad. I sort of realized the title more applies to the beginning than the end, but whatever. I was a tad bit disappointed with a certain scene because it just wouldn't come out right. Sadly, this too hasn't been beta-read. I'm such a procrastinator. I even recently realized there was a decent "spell check" available on this site - thing is, sometimes it adds "eve" to my "ev" words such as "attractive" so I got stuck going through all the words in this chapter that has those two letters side by side.

* * *

**Chapter Six: Gratitude Serenity**

* * *

Sasuke surveyed the area outside, but found no sign of Sakura. How was it so hard to locate a little girl with pink hair? She should stick out like a sore thumb, red in a black and white movie, a cat among dogs. But somehow the little minx was nowhere to be seen. Hell, he might start breaking a sweat soon which was odd since he knew she was no where near this fast at twelve. So perhaps she also retained the ability to use additional aspects of advance training other than her inhumane strength.

Sasuke could just picture the look Tsunade would give him if she ever found out. Like a demoness rising from Hell, the hokage glowered at the pint-sized version of the Uchiha, and bellowed, "What do you mean you lost her?"

"That's what I said." He blandly replied while ignoring the small sense of badly misplaced fear he unfortunately didn't feel.

"Well then…Get out there and find her!" She exclaimed, booting him out of the window, and into the next county.

Of course, that little would-be incident, knowing Tsunade, would be far more bloody, and violent considering how the hokage considered Sakura more of a daughter than a mere apprentice. And the fact that he left Konoha years ago was still a thorn in her side.

Sasuke would be lying if he didn't say the last one and a half was anything but boring. First it was the questions, the annoying, ongoing questions, the shower thing, the bad food, the questions again, the godawful animal show, the breast thing, the menstral nightmare, and now this. Even as a teen she was emotional, usually resulting in someone getting hurt, but far worse than he could've imagined.

It took him about five minutes, but he found her just when the rain began to fall. Ironically enough she sat in the same bench she had confessed her feelings all those years ago. Eyes shadowed by the limited moonlight, long pink hair plastered itself onto her pale face; her clothing cling to her slim form like a second skin. She surely had to be cold there on that bench, but she sat there beneath the full moon as if it were a perfectly sunny day instead of a rain storm.

Sakura sensed him even though Sasuke stood there without saying a word, or making any indication that he arrived a few minutes ago. "You'll catch a cold."

This wasn't the confident Sakura he returned back to. This was the Sakura who felt insecure, weak, and at times needed reassurance. In a way she was who he had once been all those years ago: Insecure, weak, sometimes needed reassurance from his mother, teachers, and classmates since everything he did was compared to Itachi for his father never made him feel worthy in comparison.

"I'm sorry." Sakura gestured to her somewhat flat chest, her clothes, and hair with a frown. "I had to leave because...I just…I want to be myself again. I don't want to be a burden to you anymore."

She was a burden, but Sasuke decided to spare her that. He sighed, "You're not a burden."

"You're just being nice."

"Che. I don't do nice."

Sakura shook her head with a soft smile, but kept her eyes glued to her feet, an odd thing for her to do. "You're nice, Sasuke. You made me rice porridge when I got sick, then played with stuffed animals, you answered all my questions, you let me sleep in your bed, you put on makeup, and even ate ice-cream despite the fact that you hate sweets."

"I only did that stuff only because I had to."

"I know." She sounded disappointed, thus contradicting that smile on her face.

Perhaps Sakura was starting to feel better and accepted the fact that she was stuck in her genin self for the time being because a moment later she stared upwards, and the smile brightened. The rain had stopped for the moment, and the moon slowly emerged from behind the dark clouds.

"The sky is so vast, even on rainy days like this. It's been a while, but I remember. When I was a child, and my bird died, my mother told me it went to heaven so I shouldn't be sad. I said I wanted to visit because I thought it might be scared all the way up there, but she said it was too far away, past where the sky ends."

Sasuke said nothing, which shouldn't surprise anyone who knew the teen. He too remembered that troublesome bird quite well. They had been seven, and he found her crying that Friday evening after school. Turned out some jerks had purposely freed the small bird to upset her. Soon enough he left the crying girl and his mother to find that bird. Why? He didn't know. Perhaps it was because that was what police officials did, and that was what he wanted to become.

**"Is this it?" Panting quite heavily, he opened his hands and presented the red and brown bird to her. She stared at the creature, then at him, and hugged him. He stood there shocked as she cried loudly, then he stared at his smiling mother in confusion. Later he learned it was a sign of gratitude.**

Even so, her ability to start a conversation and, although one-sided at times, out of nothing was quite a gift. But it would be the last thing he'd ever wish for after seeing both her and Naruto gab on and on about things some people just wouldn't give a damn about. Despite this, it was a gift nevertheless.

Sakura paused, and remained silent for quite a while. "Hey Sasuke?"

"What now?"

"Do you…do you believe in heaven?" Sasuke hadn't been prepared for such a question. He was use to her asking him questions he could lie about or just answer in one word. But never did he expect this. In fact, he didn't reply for sometime so she peered at him curiously, "Sa—"

"I guess. I don't know."

It would be nice, he supposed, to think his mother, and everyone else was in a better place, not in pain, and away from Itachi. but in the world of the ninja, it was also a comforting thought to be where there was peace and not fighting, but not often contemplated about when it came to the line of duty.

Sakura watched him carefully, and nodded. She knew he hated to be uncertain, the tone in his voice suggested as much. Facts was what he loved, the unknown wasn't. So she stared up at the clouds, an occasional rain drop dripping upon her forehead. "It's funny, but this bench has some of my best memories."

Sasuke was slightly surprised at that. Wasn't this the very bench he laid her upon the night he left, the bench where he shattered her dreams more than once, and left everything behind for his own ambitions. How could she find joy in that?

"I learned a lot here." She confessed, briefly recalling the first day they'd become a team, and beyond. "I learned how shallow I was, how weak, and fragile. I learned what it was really like to be all alone even with someone right next to you."

He had been one of the reasons why she wanted to become strong.

**"I think it's you that hasn't changed. I'm not that weak little girl anymore, Sasuke. And I think it's time you realize that."**

That day he found the rumors were true. Her punches hurt like hell. Ironically enough she had been the one to heal him with an almost too cheerful smile.

**He brushed the tear from one of her eyes as she sat beside him staring back wide-eyed. "Annoying."**

In his eyes tears were useless. They didn't bring justice, they couldn't revive his clan, they were just a waste of time, and effort. She on the other hand cried so much. She cried for him, she cried _because_ of him, sometimes she even cried because she was happy. Tears, he discovered, were useless, and at times confusing. Yet somehow they held great power.

**Slowly the red fog disappeared and there she stood, hot tears streaming down her face, fear and trust in her eyes, and that almost silent voice calling out to him. It seemed at times he wasn't the only one doing the protecting. She had been his undoing. For in that moment the marks slowly receded, and he felt her warmth engulfing his form. And there before frightened ninjas and an unconscious team mate, he felt a sense of freedom and clarity.**

Sasuke remembered it clearly like if it were just this morning. He had cried that day his clan had been slaughtered, but those tears had long dried up. His heart had hardened, his dreams replaced as he found himself lost in a sea of darkness, blood lust, and hatred.

"You get use to it."

Sakura stood up, and smiled brightly at him, which left him slightly confused. Her hopeful heart, and optimistic outlook was what many admired. "But you're not alone anymore, Sasuke. You got Naruto, Kakashi-sensei…me. You know that, right?"

Team Seven. A bunch of weirdos some may say. A energetic loudmouth, a sassy girl with one hell of a left hook, a brooding avenger, and a perverted teacher. Who would've guessed that those three students would become so famous at such a young age. At the start two team members were always at each others throats, the other was pining almost shamelessly after one, and the remainder had an annoying habit of carrying some erotic book around.

But despite their differences, they had found some common ground. For every weakness one possessed, the others made up for. For every pain and tear, there was always a shoulder to lean on. For every bit of anger, there was always a readied punching bag nearby.

They were family to one another because no matter what, they were connected. And it was this family he had once betrayed, this family that would never forsake him, and helped heal him in ways he had once never fully understood. In the end, he needed them just as much as they needed him. Sometimes, even more.

Sakura slowly walked up to him, but still he had said nothing. In his mind, why say anything when there was nothing to be said. Three steps, then six, then eleven. She stood before him now, and for a few seconds they just stared at one another as the rain started to fall more heavily. Then she laughed, and left him confused once again.

"Let's go, Sasuke." Sakura smiled brightly, grabbed his hand, and tugged him forward. Even though he wore a scowl on his face, and complained about being led around like cattle, he didn't protest for long. Beneath the full moon, bathed in the rain, they walked side-by-side.

**II.**

The next day at exactly eleven in the morning, Tsunade knew it was coming. It was like the sudden chills Sasuke gets when Sakura looks ready to punch him out, the feeling of dread when Naruto has to wash dishes to pay for his ramen, the stab to the heart when one loses subscription to their favorite erotica - well, it was something quite different. Even before the door was flung open like a mini hurricane, the hokage saw the blonde blur crisscrossing its way on the rooftops of the village moving at an impressive speed.

"I'm surprised you're back so earlier, Naruto." Tsunade replied, swirling the glass of sake slowly as she peered curiously at the fuming blonde ninja.

Naruto sat on the desk, much to her annoyance, and glared at her as if she had stolen his ramen. "You gave me a stupid mission. I'm a jounin. I should be kicking ass, not getting some stupid cat from a tree. I mean, if it's smart enough to climb it, it's gotta be smart enough to get down."

"Naruto, one would think you'd be happy to get a mission. After all, you're not stuck on indefinite babysitting like Sasuke."

He looked at her as if she had lost her mind. Sometimes he got the feeling she was just out to get him. "But babysitting Sakura is actually fun. Getting your eyes scratched out by some stupid cat and getting beat up by an old woman with a cane isn't."

"For a jounin you complain too much."

"For a old lady you drink like a fish."

Only a fool would've missed that twitching of her eyebrows because no one, absolutely no one, called this woman "old" unless they had a death wish.

"If you wanna die so badly why didn't you say so?" They began to glare at one another, neither refusing to back down. But none had yet to throw the first punch. And it would've gone on for hours like the battle of wills between Sasuke and Naruto if Shizune didn't step in.

She knocked on the open door politely, but didn't wait for a response. "Lady Tsunade, your shipment is here. It's marked fragile materials."

Naruto forgotten, Tsunade smiled and moved away from the desk. Her sake from the Rock county was here. "Finally. I was about to kill someone. Konoha just doesn't make good sake anymore. We'll talk more about your escapade later, kid. Oh, and just because I'm leaving you here doesn't mean I trust you. So don't touch anything. _I mean it._"

"Nag. Nag. Nag." He muttered, and grimaced at the glare she sent his way.

"I got my eyes on you, Uzumaki."

Naruto gulped. Of course, the second she was gone, the fear was too. And thus with no one to entertain him, his attention span wavered considerably. And as whenever it does, he would wonder aimlessly, poke his head around, and find himself in trouble. Yes, it was the typical, daily cycle of Naruto Uzumaki.

Sadly enough after spinning around in the big chair of the hokage's until he nearly threw up, fiddling with some of the small trinkets on the desk and photographs, and making faces at the mirrors by the door, he got bored. That is until something sparkly caught his eyes, and like a child led to the magical world of sweets, he followed. Never mind the "hazard" sign plastered onto the side of the door, he was on a mission.

**III.**

"103." Sakura read, and pulled the thermometer from his lips, and settled it onto the dresser with a dejected sigh.

Sasuke remained on the bed, his cheeks flushed, as his temperature steadily raised much to her dismay. Quickly she removed the now nearly dried towel off his forehead, placed it into the bowel by the thermometer, and applied a newly damp one in its place.

_Sasuke never gets sick. I mean never!_ Even when more than half the village had suffered from a really bad flu several years ago, he hadn't even gotten a sniffle or anything while she and Naruto had been sick like dogs. Of course, that had its advantage since he had to nurse her back to heal...and Kakashi and Naruto too.

Sakura groaned, and mentally punched herself. _It's because of me why he got sick. This is all…my fault._

"Oh Sasuke." Her inner self cried, and she became rather annoyed by the small voice who was making her feel even worse with the constant, "Why Sasuke? Why?"

It had been two days ago since they had been out in the rain. Yesterday, Sasuke had gotten sick. It was subtle, at first. His cheeks had been unusually red, but he shrugged it off. Soon, afterwards, he seemed almost sluggish, and then finally collapsed onto the bed. Ever since then she had to get his fever to break.

Sakura grabbed some clean blankets from the lining closet, and placed them onto his comforter. The second she turned her back to change the towel, he shoved the blankets aside with a low groan. She too groaned, but out of frustration. "Don't do that, Sasuke. You need to sweat, and get better. I can't have you dying on me!"

Indeed. Sakura refused to let him die especially after he did such nice things for her even when she had been brattier than her first childhood. Plus, he was the one she was going to marry someday. Who in their right minds wanted to be widowed so soon, and before the actual wedding?

Sasuke seemed to have given in perhaps because he was too exhausted to keep moving the blankets. Whatever the reason, the Uchiha had accepted defeat. Sakura smiled proudly at this.

Watching him sleeping, his chest raising and falling at a steady pace, his lips slightly parted, cheeks somewhat flushed, Sakura realized he was even more handsome than before. He looked like such an innocent child, vulnerable, and sweet. This must've been the boy that used to smile, blush, and laugh when he had been no older than eight. The boy who loved his mother, respected his father, and adored his older brother. The boy that lost everything, and felt so defeated and alone, who built so many walls around his heart in fear of letting anyone get close to him again.

This boy, so confused, so lost, so angry, and hurt, this was the boy she loved. This complex creature named "Sasuke Uchiha". And no matter how many walls she'd have to climb, no matter how many times he would try to push her away, she'd find a way to reach his heart someday. Because she knew that boy was still in there, somewhere.

**Sasuke gently slapped her hand away and stood up himself. Clearly his pride was hurt being caught off guard by a girl he always deemed so weak and unworthy to be his sparring partner. He glared at her when she asked what was wrong in a smug, sing-a-along voice. "Che. You're so annoying."**

**Sakura smiled almost flirtatious at him for it seemed that was his pet name for her - 'Annoying Girl' and his was 'Arrogant Bastard' while Naruto's varied from time to time. "Bet you say that to all the girls you like."**

**He didn't say anything, and she expected him to just ignore her. But then after a few seconds passed with him staring at her with this intense look in his eyes, he lightly poked her on the forehead with a small smirk. A simple gesture of affection, she later learned.**

**"Hey, you just can't poke a girl and walk away. Come back here, Uchiha, and face me like a man." Sakura exclaimed, trying to pass off the blush on her cheeks as a sign of anger and not embarrassment. But he didn't take the bait, merely continued walking with that smug little smirk on his face.**

**Who would've known he, one who would rather listen to mindless chitchat about "ramen" than talk to a girl, could flirt?**

**Sakura watched him go, and the damnable blush only increased. Naruto glanced curiously at the two of them, and frowned. "Did I just miss something?"**

**They wouldn't be going out and not tell him, right? But then again they did keep a few secrets from him. Like that Karaoke night when Sasuke supposedly kissed Sakura after one too many sake. **

**Kakashi glanced at his clueless student and frowned. "Naruto, maybe we need to have a talk."**

**"We already had 'the talk'!"He groaned, recalling all the graphic details and porno used the last time. At the age of thirteen, it had scarred him for life.**

Sakura blinked a few times, and frowned. In that brief flashback she had been older, more confident, and even more prettier, as were the others. In fact, Kakashi hadn't been wearing his mask and Sasuke had his shirt off - insert inner self squealing with joy. Perhaps this meant she was getting closer to being her old self again, and the thought slightly sadden her. The closer she got to her old self, the likelihood it would be the further she'd get from Sasuke.

Deciding that his health was of more importance at the moment, Sakura dismissed her worries. She'd deal with them later. Staring still at his peaceful face, she brushed her lips softly against his flushed forehead, and gently whispered, "Get better soon, Sasuke."

**IV.**

Since three in the afternoon, Tsunade had been busily working through her old closet consisting of documents, and papers since her genin days. She hated spring cleaning, chalking it up as one of her top disliked things next to trying to appease the elders by being kind, and patient when they were unbelievably rude, and slow. That she was frantically searching through old scrolls would raise some concern especially since the closet contained quite a lot of dust and there was no sake in sight.

"Lady Tsunade, are you okay?" Shizune knocked on the closet door, and then peered in curiously to see the hokage on her knees going through boxes, and boxes of scrolls like a woman on a mission. She never saw her going through a closet – or any closet for that matter - at such a rate, not even to obtain loss sake. It was a bit scaring, but admirable as well.

"I'm fine. I had a dream last night so I came in here because I think there's another reversal, or antidote, to that aging process. I'm not really sure, and I never really looked because once I look this way why would I wanna go back?"

"Oh. I see."

"Found it. My chuunin year." She blew the dust from the scroll, turned her face so she wouldn't cough or sneeze, and then exited the closet to outlay the yellowing paper onto her desk to study it.

"What does it say?" Shizune peered over Tsunade's left shoulder then made a face. The writing on the scroll was messing, on the sides were badly drawn illustrations of a middle-aged man, notations about local gambling halls were highlighted, old debts with some still unpaid, and the prices for different bottles of sake.

"Hold on a minute…" Her keen eyes scanned the several pages before the words 'Aging' came into view. She skimmed it, and raised both eyebrows with a grin. "Now there's an odd antidote. Wonder if the Uchiha's up to it."

"A kiss?" The younger woman glanced curiously at the hokage, who shrugged.

"I guess. Who knows? I just scribbled this stuff down. It could say "kill" for all I know. I mean why would I, or anyone with an ounce of a sense, want an antidote to a miracle? Besides I wasn't really paying attention to the old coot anyways. He was as interesting as watching Jiraiya get attacked by women from the public baths every day."

Silence.

Tsunade blinked. "No, that's a lie. Jiraiya's situation is a lot more interesting."

Shizune sighed, and rolled up the scroll, and the large burst of hope faded. "So we're back at square one."

"Not necessarily. Don't sound so negative. We'll just wait for the justsu to run its course." She paused, looked at the brunette for a second, and then hung her head in defeat. "So yes, square one."

Their luck seemed to have decreased even further when they received an urgent SOS from Gai's team.

**V.**

Sakura removed the drying towel from Sasuke forehead, and placed it onto the small bowl on the nightstand, then afterwards replaced the cloth with a damper one. The brief few seconds her fingers lingered on his skin, his left hand shot out, grabbed her wrist, and then pulled her almost within inches of his face.

Sasuke opened his eyes part way with a scowl, peering up at her confused and slightly frightened face. As the fog in his vision faded, the painful hold loosened almost completely for he recognized the mop of pink hair, and set of green eyes. Clearly they did not belong to the threat he was having in his nightmare.

"S-Sakura…" Now was it just her or did he seem suddenly closer. Feeling his warm breath brushing gently against her lips, his eyes intense even in his feverish state, made her heart flutter.

Was he going to…?

Sakura's eyes grew wide, in fact those green orbs nearly dominated her face, as she stared openly at him. Her stomach did flop-flops as it filled with butterflies, her mouth suddenly became dry, and heart began to beat so loudly she feared it would ruin the moment. Meanwhile her inner self was having a field day with planning out their wedding.

"S-Sasuke…?"

"Kiss me you fool!" Her inner self exclaimed, and puckered up her lips, but she went ignored.

Would this be her first kiss...?

Then just as their lips would have touched - Sasuke promptly drifted back asleep, his hand dropping from her face, and his head turned so that her lips landed on his cheek instead. Immediately Sakura lifted her head up from his face, she mentally yelled in frustration, then reluctantly sat up.

"What a rip off!" Inner Sakura yelled. He was so damn lucky he was hot otherwise she'd kick his ass.

"Dumb. Dumb. Dumb. What am I doing?" Sakura shook her head several times, and groaned underneath her breath.

Clearly it was his fever that was making him act so affectionate, or rather weird. Well weird as in seeing him gaze all lovingly at her like if he was going to start reading outdated poetry to her or confess his undying love for her then break out in a solo. How romantic and scary that would be.

Nevertheless, his behavior was thanks to a nasty flu bug. Even so, Sakura couldn't help but to glare slightly at the boy, looking so attractive even when ill and should be looking like a tomato with black hair. She moaned underneath her breath. At this rate, she'd be on her deathbed before they kissed. Let's not even discuss going on a date.

"Get it together, you moron. I have to make him get better. Not try to steal kisses!" Sakura scolded herself and even though she wanted to grab him by the collar and kiss him to death, she just thrust a fist into the air in a manner that would've made Gai-sensei proud. "Right! To his health!"

Two days passed before Sasuke awoke, no longer held down by the flu. He had vague recollections, dreamless slumbers, and thoughts of annoying stuffed animals running about trying to attack him. The boy couldn't remember the last time he got sick. He was always so preoccupied with his revenge that he never allowed anything, even illness to keep him down. But he was no invincible, just human.

Sasuke turned his head to the side, and took notice of Sakura. She rested her head upon the edge of the bed, her small hand holding onto his. She looked peaceful, and content, but clearly worn out. She had held his hand the entire time, of this he was certain. That warm feeling was happening again, occurring only whenever he started to feel close to someone. It was nice, but a bit scary to him.

"Idiot." Sasuke grunted, and looked away. But that smile on his face, small but genuine, reduced the harshness of the term.

Being the great observer that he was, Sasuke would've saw it long before she would ever admit or recognized it. The faint purple bags beneath her eyes, the tangles in her usually smooth hair, and the rumpled clothing she wore. it was clear she never moved away from him unless she had to. She had stayed by his side. So perhaps he knew the signs because he experienced it in his life being his father's son, the top rookie, and an avenger.

Exhaustion.

That's what it was.

Sakura hardly pushed herself too this state, because when a ninja ran out of chakara, and energy, they were defenseless. So it was quite rare for her. But when she did, it took quite the toll. She would always call Naruto, and him "reckless," but she was just the same as they were. He remembered catching the medic just in time that day in the hospital after she put all her energy into saving a top official from Sands, his hands reaching out to grasp her limp form, the sudden sense of relief and then wave of anger he had felt. It was that very day Naruto and he decided she would never be overworked again. So no matter how much she'd threaten or beg him or punch or throttle Naruto, she'd get her rest one way or another even if one of them had to knock her out to do so.

Thus, they switched positions. Sasuke laid her gently on the bed, making sure to place the pillow underneath her head. Afterwards, he stood above her, hands in his pockets, his eyes watching the medic slumber with a smile on her face.

She was sixteen again, independent, strong, and pretty. There were hardly any signs of the girl who boldly expressed her feelings for him, the one that drove him up the wall, and the one he would always feel the need to protect. One would think it was bizarre, and downright insane, but he sort of missed that girl.

In the past days Sasuke had learned a lot about her, and about himself. So perhaps the once thought hellish nightmare wasn't as bad as he once would've thought. That didn't mean she wasn't annoying, she was annoying as hell, but nowadays things were different, they were different, and she was annoying in a whole other manner.

**"Bet you say that to all the girls you like."**

Sasuke soon found his fingers brushing the stray pink strands of hair from her forehead, staring intently at her sleeping form. At one time, not too long ago, if he had done so he would've snapped back like if struck by lightening. But he hadn't. Closer, and closer still, Sasuke lowered his head towards hers. His black forelocks brushed gently against her pale face as his lips softly, barely touching, against hers. He stared at her closed eyes and frowned.

This was all he could give her for everything, and she was asleep.

People thought this was how he wanted to live his life, and he never corrected them, but they were wrong. Deep down he wanted to be able to laugh, to smile, to love freely, and enjoy life. He wanted to be like Sakura, and Naruto. One day he hoped to return her affections. Maybe not today, maybe not even in a year. He hoped soon, but only if she would be willing to wait just a bit longer for him.

"Thank you." His voice was oddly soft, and low.

Perhaps it was the unforgiving bright rays of the sun coming through the window, or perhaps she heard his voice. Whatever the reason may have been Sakura began to awaken. At first she made a face, groaned, blinked a few times, and then smiled at him. "Good morning, Sasuke."

"**Good morning, Sasuke." Mikoto smiled at her now healthy son as he peered curiously at her from where she laid her head at the edge of the bed.**

He stared at her, his eyes slightly widened at the memory. There were always brief instances in time such a thing would happen, but it had been so long.

Sakura didn't expect an answer, she would be lucky if she got a grunt or a short response, but she didn't let that slow her down. That's was another thing he liked about her. She accepted him just the way he was, she didn't push him to change more than he could. Perhaps because she was among the few that could read him like a book, or at least his unvoiced responses. And she always ready with a smile, or a punch to the face, depending on the situation. In short, she was one hell of a woman.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Go back to sleep."

Sakura peered at him curiously, and blinked a few more times. This wasn't a dream, obviously since he was still being a bit of a jerk. And even though he said those words so impassively, that didn't stop the faint butterfly effect in her stomach. He may not love her, or barely stand her presence at times, but he cared in his own way.

Pleased with this knowledge, the medic smiled and fell back asleep, faintly noting with a little mental squeal that she was snuggled all warmly in Sasuke's bed. Well damn, even his pillow smelled really good.

About sixteen minutes later Sasuke stepped out of the bathroom with the steam surrounding his form. One towel around his waist, another being used to dry his head, he passed through the hallway, and noticed one red light was blinking on the phone in the kitchen.

Sasuke pressed the button, and waited for the computerized male voice to say, "You have two new messages. Monday. 8:30 am."

Beep.

"Yo. It's me!" Tsunade exclaimed, perhaps a bit tipsy, or just a morning person. "I take it that Sakura's back to normal since you're not begging me for a cure."

She sounded quite amused, and was apparently some sort of mind reader, but why was she calling so early in the morning. "See I told you that assignment wouldn't kill you."

"Che." He replied. The woman either had no idea what she was saying, or did and was probably just trying to patronize him.

"And I'm pleased to present you with a new mission. It's not exactly what you'd call 'A' class, but it's not easy. Both Gai's, and Asuma's teams both failed."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. The fact that Neji had given in did surprise him. He was quite the perfectionist, but so was he. But what could be so bad that would make two exceptional jounin teams fail? Well, it must've been something difficult. But unlike them, Sasuke was up to the challenge.

"Let's just say you came highly recommended…and in fact, requested. I believe the last assignment had you well prepared, and Sakura will prove a very good partner."

"Last assignment…" Sasuke scowled. He had a feeling, a really bad feeling; he was not going to like this would be 'mission'. She sounded all too happy to thrust the work onto him.

"Well…I think someone else can explain this one better than I can. Oh, good luck!" Was it just his imagination or did he suddenly detect excessive sympathy in those final two words?

Silence then followed. Figuring the other message was unimportant; he started to leave, but the phone message beeped twice. And against his better judgment, he waited.

"Monday. 10:10 am."

"Hey, Sasuke." Naruto said, his voice sounded ten years younger. "Uhm…can I come over?"

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**/ The End. /**

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_**Upcoming Chapter Specials: **_These will be posted one after the other the next two Saturdays from today, and will include previews of new stories. Also, check my profile for upcoming works including drabbles, long ficlets, and smutty materials.

1. **Epilogue** - Features Sakura and Sasuke's dilemma with Naruto. Turns out nothing will prepare anyone for this energetic knucklehead. All Hell breaks loose.

2. **One Bonus Stories** - (a) Sasuke deals with the children while Sakura is away. (b) Sasuke deals with the fact that his daughter is in love with the "enemy". (c) And lastly Sakura tries to have "the talk" with their sons. Let's see if the previous missions helped.

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**Final Author's Note: **My first ever completed Naruto fanfiction. This completely calls for a celebration. Indeed, I do love to type a good story. Took me a long, long time, but I did what I set out to do. Thanks to both my beta-readers for their hard work. Additionally, there will be an epilogue, not a sequel, and will definitely be no where near as long as this would be one shot story. Yes, my hands and my brain don't comprehend the meaning of a "one-shot".

Yes, I did find a little pleasure in torturing my all time favorite male character Sasuke even though he can be such a hot, arrogant jerk - but then again, I do like Inuyasha as well. This story was quite fun to write, and work with. There were some parts I was iffy about, yes I'm guilty that I wanted to finish up, but I did get some fluff in! I'm going to revise this again tomorrow since I'm a bit sleepy. Thanks everyone for the reviews, comments, and suggestions. Also thanks to my beta reader dbz-lover91 for her services.


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